Japan still seeks to resolve the issue of the four southernmost Kuril Islands, also known as the Northern Territories in Japan, and sign a peace treaty with Russia, but does not see any prospects for discussing it at the moment due to the Ukrainian conflict, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Friday. "Now is not the situation where we can talk about the prospects for negotiations on a peace treaty, but the government is maintaining its course set on resolving the issue of the Northern Territories and signing a peace agreement," Kishida said during hearings in the parliament.

The prime minister also noted that Japan considers unilateral attempts to change the status quo by use of force to be unacceptable, which is why relations between Tokyo and Moscow "are in a very serious condition. Russia and Japan have been locked in a dispute over the four southernmost Kuril Islands (Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and Habomai) since the two countries never signed a permanent peace treaty following World War II.

In March, Russia withdrew from talks with Japan on signing a post-World War II peace treaty, and halted visa-free travel for Japanese citizens to the southern Kuril Islands and joint economic activities on the disputed islands. The move was due to Tokyo's "unfriendly" steps over the Ukrainian conflict, Moscow said.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP