Japanese FM Eager to Start Cooperation With Russia on Kuril Islands

Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Friday that he is ready to embark on economic cooperation activities with Russia on the disputed Southern Kuril Islands.

BONN (Sputnik) — He added that he would like to fulfill the agreements of the two countries' leaders on the joint economic activities.

"The interdepartmental council has been created headed by me in order for the aspects of the joint operations to be performed in a good pace," Kishida said at the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bonn.

The foreign minister also noted that he had been pleased with the opportunity to meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Bonn.

He added that after the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Japan in December 2016, a tremendous job has been carried out in the sphere of joint economic operations with Russia on the Kurils. According to Kishida, the recent consultations between deputy foreign ministers of Russia and Japan in Moscow also featured constructive discussions.

In October 2016, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov and his Japanese counterpart Shinsuke Sugiyama discussed economic cooperation and the peace treaty between the two countries at a meeting in Moscow.

An agreement on joint economic activities on Southern Kuril Islands was reached during the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Japan on December 15-16, 2016, following the creation of the Japan Council for joint economic activities with Russia on February 7. The first round of the consultations as part of the council is scheduled for March 14.

Moscow and Tokyo have not signed a peace treaty after World War II, when Southern Kuril Islands become part of the Soviet territory. At the same time Japan disputes the territorial belonging of the Kurils, which it calls the Northern Territories.