TOKYO, July 10. /TASS/. Japan supports the G7’s sanctions policy on Russia even as it believes that maintaining relations with Russia is important, Japanese Senior Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Takeshi Akahori said in response to a TASS reporter’s question.

"Japan will continue to closely cooperate with the international community, primarily the G7, to support Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia," he said at a briefing that discussed the results of the G7 summit in France. "At the same time, Russia is a neighbor of Japan, and maintaining appropriate bilateral relations is important," he added.

According to the senior Japanese diplomat, Tokyo "will act accordingly, based on what serves its national interests."

Since 2022, Japan has imposed several packages of sanctions on Russia, which has heavily derailed bilateral ties. Russian Ambassador to Tokyo Nikolay Nozdrev earlier told TASS in an interview that relations had hit an unprecedented low due to Japan’s hostile policy course. The diplomat identified Tokyo’s abandonment of its unfriendly course as a prerequisite to restoring relations and re-establishing interstate contacts.

Earlier this month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a message marking the opening of an exhibition in Tokyo dedicated to Iosif Goshkevich, the first diplomatic representative of the Russian Empire to Japan, that there are steadfast supporters of constructive dialogue and mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia in Japan despite the current political climate, as he expressed confidence that "no political circumstances can shake that."