Abe: Japan, Russia Take Important Step Toward Peace Treaty

© Sputnik / Michael Klimentyev / Go to the mediabankRussian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, meet in Nagato, Yamaguchi Prefecture
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, meet in Nagato, Yamaguchi Prefecture - Sputnik International
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Russia and Japan have made an important step during the recent high-level summit in getting closer to signing a peace treaty and ending the technical state of war between the two countries, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a two-day visit to Japan on December 15-16, vising Abe's ancestral city of Yamaguchi and later overseeing the signing of a number of cooperation documents in Tokyo. The two leaders also said they reached a level of understanding with regards to the signing of the peace treaty.

"I am deeply touched by the fact that we were able to make an important step toward a peace treaty," Abe said, as quoted by the Kyodo news agency.

December 16, 2016. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin following their meeting in Tokyo. - Sputnik International
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During December's summit, Russia and Japan agreed to step up economic cooperation on Russia's Kuril Islands which have been a sticking point in peace treaty talks. Japan claims the Russian territory, gained after World War II, to be its own and has made its return a condition for signing the treaty.

Moscow and Tokyo never signed a permanent peace treaty after the World War II due to Tokyo's stance on the the Southern Kurils, encompassing Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai.

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