World War II Is Still Technically Going On…Kind Of

Russia and Japan sure now how to hold a grudge.

There are four islands called the "Southern Kurile Islands" -- Habomai, Shikotan, Kunashi, and Iturup - which both countries lay claim to. Because of the disputed islands - a dispute that goes back to at least 1855 - Josef Stalin refused to sign the San Fransisco Treaty in 1951...a treaty every other Ally nation signed with Japan. Over 60 years later, the two countries are still adamant that the islands in question are theirs. While talks and diplomatic relations have been ongoing the entire time, neither side has yet to give up their claim.

Neither side is really looking to bring the world back into a war that could claim millions of lives over a group of islands, but the fact that they can't let it go and move on just proves how something as small as an island chain can hamper world peace. If the war picked back up today, odds are both the Axis and the Allies would be completely different than they were 60+ years ago...