MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The progress in issue of Russia and Japan signing a post-World War II peace treaty is only possible when the Moscow-Japanese relations are brought to a higher level, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov said.
"Speaking of compromise, we mean the search for a mutually acceptable decision to the issue… The progress in reaching it is only possible amid the formation of an atmosphere of trust in Russia-Japan relations, bringing them to a higher level, a level of different quality, of mutually beneficial cooperation," Morgulov told RIA Novosti.
Morgulov said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida were not planning to discuss the peace treaty issue in depth on December 3.
"Our position in talks on the peace treaty remains unchained – we base it on the unconditional need for Tokyo to accept the outcomes of World War II, including territorial [outcomes] regarding the south Kuril islands,"Morgulov added.
Moscow and Tokyo are preparing a series of cooperation agreements in energy, industrial cooperation and hi-tech, Morgulov said.
"At the moment we are working on finalizing several important agreements in areas such as energy, industrial cooperation, hi-tech, urban environment, medicine," Morgulov told RIA Novosti.
The finalization is part of final preparations for Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Japan on December 15-16.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida is expected in Moscow on Saturday to lay the groundwork with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov for Putin's visit.
