By Ricky Hough
The two countries have economic and strategic interests in developing relations.
While the tight bond that has formed between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin may seem a bit odd on the face of it, the reality is that the two leaders need each other in ways that are very significant to the future prosperity of their countries. Since Abe and Putin took office in 2012, the two leaders have met on ten separate occasions, becoming so familiar that they are now on a first-name basis. Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March 2014 put Russo-Japanese relations on ice as Abe was forced to side with the G7 group of industrialized nations in applying pressure and sanctions on Moscow. Washington in particular pressured Abe’s government to suspend talks with Russia in an effort to maintain a united front.
On November 9, however, Abe and Putting managed to swing a brief conservation on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing. According to a Yomiuri Shimbun report, during the conversation Abe managed a verbal confirmation that Putin would visit Japan sometime next year. There is widespread hope among government officials in Tokyo that an Abe-Putin summit will put Japan and Russia on track to settle the Kuril Islands (the Northern Territories in Japan) dispute and finalize a formal peace treaty that has been on the shelf since the end of World War II.
Read the full story at The Diplomat