High Expectations To Solve Russia-Japan Issues Not Yet Matched By Real Results - Kremlin

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 08th September, 2019) Russian-Japanese issues can be resolved only on the basis of mutual trust, and the existing high expectations in this regard have not yet been matched by real results, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday.

"Naturally, there are high expectations. The solutions to such vital issues can be found only on the basis of mutual trust. In general, we are very positive about our cooperation, but we regret that we have not yet managed to reach a solution to a number of very important problems," Peskov said aired by Rossiya 1 broadcaster.

Russia and Japan have not signed a permanent peace treaty after the end of World War II mainly due to the dispute over a series of the Kuril Islands � referred to as the Southern Kurils by Russia and the Northern Territories by Japan � which remains one of the main stumbling blocks in the peace talks.

In November 2018, Moscow and Tokyo agreed to speed up the negotiations on the long-pending peace agreement, but there has been little progress on the issue ever since. The two parties held a number of the so-called 2+2 format talks between ministers of foreign affairs and defense. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe regularly discuss this issue. Some of the results include launching joint economic projects on the disputed islands and arranging the visit of former Japanese residents of the Kuril Islands to the tombs of their relatives.