TOKYO, July 20. /TASS/. There are no hurdles in talks with Russia on joint economic activities on the South Kuril Islands, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono said at a regular press conference on Friday.

According to him, there are also no hurdles in talks on a peace treaty.

On Thursday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that amendments to Japan’s Act on Special Measures concerning Advancement of Resolution of Northern Territories Issues [Japan refers to Russia’s South Kuril Islands as "Northern Territories" - TASS], passed by the country’s parliament, would impede talks on the two countries’ joint economic activities in the region.

"The approved bill directly links joint economic activities to the far-fetched idea about the South Kuril Islands belonging to Japan and actually places them on par with measures ‘aimed at ensuring an early return of the Northern Territories’," the statement reads. "We consider this to be nothing but an attempt to prejudge the outcome of talks on the matter and push unacceptable options for resolving the peace treaty issue," the Russian Foreign Ministry added.

South Kuril Islands issue

Since the mid-20th century, Russia and Japan have been holding consultations in order to clinch a peace treaty as a follow-up to World War II. The Kuril Islands issue remains the sticking point since after WWII the islands were handed over to the Soviet Union while Japan laid claims to the four southern islands. In 1956, the two countries signed a common declaration on ending the state of war and restoring diplomatic and all other relations, however, a peace treaty has still not been reached. Moscow has stated many times that Russia’s sovereignty over the islands cannot be called into question.

The two countries have been holding consultations on joint economic activities on the South Kuril Islands in the areas of aquaculture, greenhouse farming, tourism, wind energy and waste management. The two countries consider joint economic activities to be an important step towards signing a peace treaty. However, Tokyo and Moscow have different views on ways to implement such projects. Russia believes that it should be done in compliance with Russian laws, while Japan suggests establishing some "special system" for the South Kuril Islands.