MOSCOW, November 17 (RIA Novosti, Andrei Fesyun) - Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi urged Russia Thursday to set aside the discussion of a long-running territorial dispute between the two countries for the time being. "We should think twice whether it is worth focusing on this issue at present," Koizumi told a news conference in Tokyo.
In his opinion, "the sides will hardly reach any agreement on this complex issue, which has existed for 60 years," during the November 20-22 visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Tokyo.
He said that the territorial dispute, which involves four islands off Russia's far-eastern coast, was a complex problem and both sides had different approaches toward its resolution.
"It will take time and further discussions [to resolve it]," the Japanese leader said.
On November 13, Koizumi told Russian television that both countries could develop relations despite the territorial disagreement.
Relations between the two countries have been strained in recent years due to the dispute over the Kuril Islands. Japan claims sovereignty over four islands that became part of the Soviet Union after World War II. The issue remains unresolved and has prevented the signing of a peace treaty to end the state of war between the two countries formally.
