A diplomatic row between Russia and Japan has escalated, with Tokyo recalling its ambassador to Moscow over a visit to the disputed Kuril Islands.

Japan's foreign minister announced the country's ambassador is being temporarily recalled in response to a visit to the Kuril Islands by Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.

Mr Medvedev toured one of the islands on Monday, becoming the first Russian leader in more than a century to visit the Islands.

The Kurils are a four-island chain north of Japan that were seized by the Soviet Union near the end of World War II.

They have a population of only 19,000, but their ownership is hotly contested between Tokyo and Moscow.

The dispute has stopped the two countries from formally signing a peace treaty to officially end the war between them.