Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the 2013 National Rally to Demand the Return of the Northern Territories, held in Tokyo.

The National Rally is held every year in Tokyo on February 7, which is Northern Territories Day, as an event for government officials and private organizations campaigning for the return of the territories to gather at a single venue to call for further and broader development of the national movement for the return of the Northern Territories, and to express a strong resolve to demand the early return of the Northern Territories to the people both inside and outside Japan.

The Prime Minister said in his address,

"I had a telephone talk with President Putin of the Russian Federation last December, and said that I would like to put out effort so as to seek a solution acceptable to both countries, together with President Putin, for the final settlement of the Northern Territories issue, which is the largest pending matter left between Japan and Russia.
I mentioned six years ago in this National Rally that I am determined to make every effort to resolve the Northern Territories issue and conclude a peace treaty with Russia. This determination has not changed in the least.
In line with the basic policy of 'resolving the issue of the attribution of the Four Northern Islands and concluding a peace treaty with Russia,' the government will continue its negotiations with a strong will so as to make progress towards the final settlement of the territorial issue.
I will put efforts into the issue with an awareness that the Northern Territories issue has not been resolved even after 67 years since the end of the war, and that the former islanders are aging and the issue needs to be resolved promptly.
The Northern Territories issue is a problem for the public as a whole, and in order to push the negotiations forward, it is necessary that the government and the people of Japan unite their efforts.
I will close my address with my wish that the campaign for the return of the Northern Territories continues to be promoted, more robustly than ever, as a nation-wide campaign."