MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi recognizes the importance of ties with Russia, believing that the two countries must restore dialogue, Muneo Suzuki, a lawmaker from Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said.
"I very much want to restore Japan-Russia relations to the state they were in under [former Prime Minister Shinzo] Abe and [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin. The current Japanese Prime Minister, Ms. Takaichi, is a follower of Mr. Abe. I spoke with her before leaving for Moscow. Ms. Takaichi said that she is very well aware of the importance of Japan-Russia ties," he said at a meeting with Grigory Karasin, the head of the Russian Federation Council Committee on International Affairs. "I have consistently taken a negative view of the fact that Japan, at the request of [former US President Joe] Biden, has adopted cold ties with Russia," the lawmaker noted.
"It has now been six months since Takaichi became Japan’s prime minister. And I very much hope that Ms. Takaichi will continue to make efforts to develop and improve Japan-Russia relations. And I, too, will assist her in this endeavor," he added.
Suzuki traveled to Russia in an effort to improve relations between the two countries. He had previously told TASS that he intended to meet with Russian officials in Moscow who usually receive him during his visits to Russia. Over the past four years, the lawmaker has regularly met with Deputy Foreign Ministers Andrey Rudenko and Mikhail Galuzin, as well as Russian Federation Council Deputy Speaker Konstantin Kosachev.
Since 2022, the Japanese government has imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russia, significantly curtailing bilateral economic relations. In response, Russia suspended consultations with Japan on the issue of a peace treaty. Moscow also withdrew from negotiations to establish joint economic activities in the southern Kuril Islands, and trips there by former Japanese residents have ceased.