TOKYO, January 13. /TASS/. Japan’s government attaches great importance to the current official visit to Russia of ex-foreign minister Masahiko Komura, who is vice-president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the chairman of the Japan-Russia Parliamentary Friendship Association, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has said.
"This is the first visit this year at the high level, and we consider that it will give a positive impetus to the development of the Japanese-Russian relations," Suga stressed.
Japan and Russia have also agreed to cooperate closely on the issue of the situation on the Korean Peninsula following North Korea’s recent nuclear test, he reminded.
North Korea announced on January 6 that it had successfully conducted a hydrogen bomb test. The country’s government said in a statement circulated by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) the test had had "no adverse impacts on the environmental situation." Now, according to the statement, North Korea "possesses the strongest deterrent forces."
"We have come to a common stance that Pyongyang’s nuclear tests are unacceptable and agreed to cooperate on this issue," Suga said.
Komura, who is now in Moscow, held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday. The sides discussed the situation in Northeast Asia and in Syria.
Lavrov and Komura exchanged views on the Russian-Japanese relations and their prospects, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. They discussed the situation in Northeast Asia after North Korea’s nuclear test and also the Syrian conflict and the fight against international terrorism.
Komura also handed over a personal message of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Russian President Vladimir Putin.