Russia released 24 Japanese fishermen and their vessels on Tuesday, after detaining them for allegedly exceeding the octopus catch quota off a chain of disputed Pacific islands, Japan's foreign ministry said.
![Russia releases Japan fishing boats held near disputed islands](http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/a3e61c29fe8b10538b5dd26d10ff830f6da28a52.jpg)
The five boats departed a port in Kunashiri island, one of the four southern Kuril islands disputed by Tokyo and
Moscow, a foreign ministry official in charge of
Russian affairs confirmed.
The fishermen are in good health, top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga later told reporters.