Aso to visit Russia to seek settlement over Northern Territories row

Prime Minister Taro Aso is going to visit Sakhalin, far eastern Russia, on Feb. 18, to hold a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, hoping it will lead to a breakthrough in the Northern Territories issue. It will be the first time for a Japanese prime minister to visit Sakhalin since the end of World War II.

At a liaison meeting between the government and the ruling parties on Monday, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura reported on Aso's planned visit to Sakhalin. On Feb. 18, there will be a ceremony marking the launch of a natural gas liquefying facility that is part of "Sakhalin II," an oil and gas development project in which Japanese companies are taking part. Medvedev asked Aso on Jan. 24 to attend the ceremony.

However, trouble flared last month when Russia required a Japanese delegation bringing humanitarian aid to those living in the four disputed islands off Hokkaido to submit disembarkation cards. The Japanese government refused the demand, claiming that submitting disembarkation cards would be the same thing as admitting that the four islands were Russian territories.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry worries that the so-called visa-free exchange with the islands that started in 1992 could be discontinued, and the issue is likely to be a topic for discussion at the summit meeting. The ministry hopes to settle the issue as early as possible, but a quick solution seems unlikely.

麻生首相：１８日サハリン訪問　ビザなし交流解決めどなし