August is the time for many Japanese to pay their respects to their ancestors. But former residents of four Russia-held islands are not allowed to visit their family graves in the Northern Territories. So dozens of them and their family members have offered prayers at a ceremony held on the sea.

Sixty-eight people set off from Nemuro Port in Hokkaido on Monday morning aboard a ship built specifically for former islanders to visit the territories.

Yamamoto Shigeki, the head of an association working to resolve Northern Territories issues, said the situation remains tough.

He said he hopes the participants will be able to honor their ancestors in locations as close to their hometowns as possible.

The ship stopped behind the so-called median line between the Nemuro Peninsula and the disputed islands, before returning to the port in the afternoon.

Monday's ceremony is the first of six such events scheduled to be held by September 30. About 400 people from across Japan are due to take part.

This is the second straight year that an at-sea ceremony has been held.

Former residents used to be allowed visa-free visits to the islands, but these have been suspended since Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. It is not known when they can be resumed.

Russia controls the four islands. Japan claims them.
The Japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of Japan's territory. It says the islands were illegally occupied after World War Two.