TOKYO, April 3. /TASS/. The Japanese government should prioritize not the national interests of other states, but those of Japanese citizens, therefore it is natural for Tokyo to seek closer ties with Russia amid the energy market crisis, Director of the Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University, Kazuhiro Kumo told a TASS correspondent.
"The Japanese government should, first of all, take into account not the lives and interests of other countries’ peoples, but those of Japanese citizens. In the context of a serious crisis and oil product shortages, it is only logical to aim at improving relations with Russia, a resource-rich country," he said, commenting on a report by Kyodo News that the Japanese government intended to send a delegation to Russia in May to discuss, among other issues, oil purchases.
According to the expert, criticism of this approach from third countries "would be simply interference in internal affairs," and from Japanese society it would be "absurd, because it would harm their own nation."
On Thursday, Kyodo News, citing sources, reported that the Japanese government intended to send a delegation to Russia in May and invited top managers of major companies, including Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Mitsui O. S. K. Lines, to participate. The visit is being planned considering that Japanese businesses could resume operations in Russia after the conflict in Ukraine ends. According to the agency, if the visit occurs, the issue of oil purchases from Russia may be discussed.
On Friday, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said the news agency report was false.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has reported on multiple occasions that "Tokyo’s reckless Rusophobic policy negatively affects bilateral relations and hits the interests of Japan and its citizens the hardest." Within Japanese society, several observers have criticized Muneo Suzuki, a member of parliament from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, who advocates closer ties with Russia.