Putin to meet with Japan’s PM in Moscow focusing on political cooperation, trade

MOSCOW, April 27. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Moscow on Thursday, focusing on cooperation between the two countries. "At the talks, Russia’s president and Japan’s prime minister will discuss implementation of the agreements reached during the visit of Russia’s head of state to Japan on December 15-16, 2016," the Kremlin said. "The current state of bilateral relations and prospects for political, economic and humanitarian cooperation are due to be on the table of the talks." Besides, Putin and Abe are expected to exchange views on pressing global and regional issues. North Korea, southern Kurile Islands and peace treaty Among the issues for negotiations, Japan names the post-war peace treaty, joint economic activities in the southern Kurile Islands and North Korea. "The negotiations are likely to focus on joint economic activities on the four Northern Islands (that’s how Japan calls Russia’s southern Kuril Islands - TASS)," Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said earlier, adding the two leaders will discuss the situation on the Korean Peninsula and North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs. On April 25 at a narrow-format reception in Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he hoped to "make progress on the issue of the peace treaty," the Kyodo news agency reported citing Abe. "I hope to have a meeting that would lead to Russia's constructive cooperation toward resolving issues such as those of the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East," he said. Economic collaboration In 2016, the Japanese prime minister came forward with an eight-point plan aimed to forge closer ties between the two countries, in particular in the energy sector, between small and medium-sized businesses and in promotion of industrialization of the Far East. The plan includes humanitarian contacts and cutting-edge technology, including nuclear energy, as well. Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Takeo Akiba told TASS ahead of the summit that Japan mulls over Russian proposals on collaboration in southern Kurile Islands and plans to raise an issue of legal framework for those projects at the next talks. "If joint economic activity on four Northern Islands is mentioned, the two countries’ leaders reached an agreement last December to begin consultations on this collaboration in fishing, sea farming, tourism, medicine, environmental protection and other potential sectors," the diplomat said. "All the directions have prospects given the potential of four Northern Islands - their rich nature, geographical features - is taken into account." "Japan and Russia have drawn up proposals on concrete projects and held meaningful discussions," he said. "Now, the projects are being thoroughly considered and in the future we will discuss their details, including required legal framework." Meanwhile, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Hiroshige Seko in an exclusive interview to TASS said that Japan and Russia had already developed a system making possible to overcome difficulties arising in the course of economic cooperation. "It is important that as many Russian residents as possible understand: cooperation with Japan contributes to improvement of their quality of life," the minister said, adding Tokyo prioritizes cooperation in medicine and municipal services as the most common in ordinary people’s everyday life. Following Putin’s visit to Japan Russian president visited Japan’s Nagato (Yamaguchi Prefecture) and Tokyo on December 15-16 last year, the first visit in past 11 years. The talks focused on the post-war peace treaty and southern Kurile Islands along with bilateral economic collaboration. After the talks, Putin and Abe adopted a joint statement, vowing that consultations on joint economic activity on the southern Kurile Islands could pave the way for the peace treaty. The leaders said in the joint statement that consultations of Russia and Japan on joint economic activities in the southern Kurile Islands should result in a separate international treaty. Besides, Putin and Abe agreed to revive frozen contacts between the two countries, including between defense officials and in the ‘two plus two’ format between officials from the foreign and defense ministries (which have already happened). ‘Upsurge in Japanese-Russian Relations’ Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after the visit of Russia's President Vladimir Putin to Japan gave an exclusive interview to TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman, stressing the "visit favored a new, big upsurge in the Russian-Japanese relations" and that the "talks are an important and big step towards a peace treaty." "President Putin and I have come to the conclusion - in case of common effort, Japan and Russia have unlimited opportunities for development of relations in all spheres," Abe said. During the visit, Putin said at a plenary session of the Russian-Japanese business forum that Japan is an important partner in the Asia Pacific region and that Russia is motivated to forge closer ties and expand mutually beneficial contacts with it. At a news conference after the talks with Abe, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged to stop playing "the historical ping-pong" game with Japan about the fate of the southern Kuril Islands. "To our mind, it is necessary to stop this historical ping-pong for these territories and finally realize that the fundamental interests of both Japan and Russia require ultimate and long-term settlement and this is the crux of the matter," Putin said. Since mid-20th century, Russia and Japan have been negotiating a peace treaty after World War II. The main stumbling block to this is the issue of the ownership of the South Kuril Islands. After the end of World War II all Kuril Islands were incorporated into the Soviet Union. However, the ownership of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan islands and the Habomai Islands is challenged by Japan. Russia’s Foreign Ministry has stated many times that Russia’s sovereignty over the islands is beyond doubt. In 1956, the Soviet Union and Japan signed a joint declaration on ceasing the state of war. The two countries resumed diplomatic and other relations, however no peace treaty has been signed until now. The Soviet Union committed to paper in the declaration its readiness to hand over Shikotan and Habomai to Japan as a gesture of good will after the peace treaty is ultimately signed. Japan’s position is that the peace treaty should be signed after solving the issue of the ownership of all four South Kuril Islands. Read more