La Pérouse Strait (Japanese: Soya Strait) is a strait dividing the southern part of the Russian island of Sakhalin from the northern part of the Japanese island of Hokkaido, and connecting the Sea of Japan on the west with the Sea of Okhotsk on the east. It is 40km (25 miles) long and 20 to 40m deep. The strait is named for Jean-François de La Pérouse, who discovered the channel in 1787.