“I would not attach much importance to such statements because the only thing that matters is the political will to reach an agreement. If it is there, no statements can make any additional action,” Professor Dmitry Streltsov, the head of the Department for Oriental Studies of Moscow State Institute of International Relations, told RIA Novosti.
According to the expert, the context of Japan’s statement was that if the country gains sovereignty over the islands it will decide on how to dispose them including the possibility of US military bases’ deployment.
“Thus, the islands will not be different from other Japanese territories if they are handed over,” Streltsov added.
The expert also stressed that he is skeptical about the perspective of “half and half” Kurils’ handover, that is giving only two islands to Japan. According to him, if Russia hands over the islands at all, it will hand over four of them and all the rights for their disposal.
“I do not believe that any formula can be invented which will allow Russia to hand over the islands, and at the same time keep sovereignty over them or attach any conditions to their disposal,” Streltsov said.
The Asahi newspaper also reported that Japan’s optimism on progress in territorial dispute talks had started to fade since November. It became obvious after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting on the sidelines of APEC summit in Lima at the end of the month, the newspaper says.
After the meeting Abe said that Tokyo and Moscow will barely be able to solve the issue of a permanent peace treaty just after one joint summit.
"Signing a peace treaty that we have not got for more than 70 years is not an easy task, but it cannot be solved without trust-based relations with President Putin,” he stressed.
On Tuesday Putin told Japanese broadcaster Nippon TV (NTV) that any attempts to speak about Japan’s sovereignty over the Kurils “from the outset” will ruin further discussion regarding the issue.
While speaking with the Japanese reporters, the Russian leader said: "You have just shown a brilliant example of this (Japan’s) approach to the discussion by raising the point that economic activity can develop on the islands that would be under Japan’s sovereignty." "However, if this occurs from the outset, no second step is needed and the issue can be considered closed. That was not the agreement," Putin added.
Japan and Russia did not sign a permanent peace treaty after World War II due to a dispute over four islands, which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan – the Northern Territories that include Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai.
On October 16, 1956, Tokyo and Moscow signed the Soviet–Japanese Joint Declaration, which ended the state of war and provided for trade development, the resolution of the territorial dispute and the eventual signing of the peace treaty.
However Japan claims all four islands referring to Treaty of Commerce and Navigation between Japan and Russia which was signed in 1855.
