Putin discusses possibility of signing Russia-Japan peace treaty

Baku. 16 December. REPORT.AZ/ Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday he had discussed the possibility of signing a post-World War II peace treaty with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during their talks in the country.

Report informs referring to the RIA Novosti, on Thursday, Putin held talks with Abe in the city of Nagato in Yamaguchi Prefecture.

"Yesterday in Nagato we held substantive negotiations with the prime minister during which we discussed the state of the whole range of Russia-Japan relations, including the issues of political nature, the possibility of signing a peace treaty," Putin said.

In his turn, Japan’s prime minister noted the prospects of bilateral cooperation. He said Russia and Japan have a big potential. "As the leaders of the two countries, we need to unlock this potential in the Japanese-Russian relations," Abe said.

Moscow and Tokyo never signed a permanent peace treaty after the World War II due to a disagreement over the group of islands, which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan the Northern Territories, encompassing Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai. 

On Tuesday, the Russian leader gave an interview to Japanese media outlets, saying that the absence of the peace treaty was an "anachronism" that should be removed and called for full-scale normalization of bilateral ties.