Senior Russian Lawmaker Says Ultimatums Not Helpful in Russia-Japan Dialogue

Russia has no territorial disputes with Japan but Moscow is ready for the cooperation with Tokyo when it is not based on ultimatums, according to the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Russian upper house of parliament.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russia has no territorial disputes with Japan but Moscow is ready for the cooperation with Tokyo when it is not based on ultimatums, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Russian upper house of parliament said Monday.

"For Russia, there is no territorial issue and controversial topics. But it [Russia] is ready to talk with Japan about this, knowing how important it is for the politicians and society. However, no ultimatums, no offenses will be of help here," Konstantin Kosachev told Izvestiya newspaper in an interview.

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Japan on December 15-16 to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. As a result, Russian and Japanese companies signed 68 documents on energy, investment and agriculture.

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.