BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wrapped up in Tokyo on Friday with some agreements on economic cooperation, but no breakthrough on the territorial issue that Japan had craved for.
At a joint press conference with Abe, Putin stressed that the issue of the disputed territories (called the Southern Kurils by Russia and the Northern Territories by Japan) is the outcome of World War II, and implied that the U.S.-Japan alliance is an impediment to a solution.
The islets and surrounding waters are important for the Russian navy's access to the Pacific, while Russia has to consider Japan's special ties with the United States, said Putin.
Putin's remarks meant something as Japanese officials had said before Putin's visit that Japan did not rule out the possibility of the deployment of two U.S. military bases on two of the four disputed islands in the future.
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