TOKYO, July 26. / TASS /. The Japanese government believes that Tokyo and Moscow have some problems in relations, thus it explores the possibility of a dialogue with Russia’s authorities at various levels, Chief Secretary of the Cabinet of Ministers Katsunobu Kato announced on Monday.
"There is currently no agreement on a schedule for a possible meeting of the Russian and Japanese leaders. However, precisely because there are some challenges in relations with Russia, discussions with the Russian side are needed. Thus, we are considering the possible dialogue at various levels," Kato noted, answering a journalist's question about the prospects for a meeting.
Earlier, Russian Ambassador to Japan Mikhail Galuzin was summoned to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, where First Deputy Foreign Minister Takeo Mori voiced protest to him over Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin’s working visit to Iturup Island. Galuzin told reporters Russia disregarded the Japanese side’s protest, according to the Kyodo agency.
On Monday, Mishustin began a working trip to the Far East and Siberia. His program started with a visit to a special part of the region, the Kuril archipelago, namely Iturup Island. Here the prime minister visited a clinic and inspected a fish processing facility.
President Vladimir Putin earlier requested that he pay particular attention to the Southern Kuril Islands during the trip. Putin pointed out that Russia had long been in talks with Japan on creating "conditions for economic entities" there.
Earlier, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told reporters at a regular press conference that Japan would lodge a protest over the Russian prime minister’s "regrettable" visit to Iturup. According to him, the visit runs counter to Japan’s consistent stance on the Northern Territories (Japan’s term for Russia’s southern Kuril Islands). Kato also said after the news broke about the preparations for the visit, Japan urged Russia many times to cancel this trip "via various diplomatic channels."
For decades, Moscow and Tokyo have been holding consultations in order to clinch a peace treaty as a follow-up to World War II. The southern Kuril Islands issue remains the key sticking point. In 1945, the whole archipelago was handed over to the Soviet Union. Tokyo laid claims to Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and a group of uninhabited islands. The Russian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stated that Moscow’s sovereignty over the islands is enshrined in international law and cannot be called into question.