MOSCOW, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Kremlin said on Wednesday it hoped that the deployment of missile systems in the disputed Southern Kuril Islands in the Pacific would not affect Moscow's negotiations with Tokyo.
"This should in no way harm the fast trends that there have developed in our relations with Tokyo in terms of thorough preparations for president Putin's forthcoming visit to Japan and the continuing contacts over ways of advancing bilateral relations," TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.
Russian media have reported that Moscow had deployed Bastion and Bal coastal defense missile systems on the islands of Kunashir and Iturup, close to the Japanese island of Hokkaido.
Earlier in the day, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida was quoted as saying by the Kyodo news agency that Tokyo was considering "appropriate measures" in response.
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