Japan's envoy to study Medvedev's possible new trip to SKuriles.

YOKOHAMA, November 7 (Itar-Tass) - Japanese Ambassador to Russia
Masaharu Kono was given an instruction, on returning to Moscow, to pay
special attention to a possible new trip by President Dmitry Medvedev to the South Kuriles, along with preparation for top-level talks on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Yokohama on November 13-14.

Sources at Japanese government reported on Sunday that this task was
set in connection with a recent statement by Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov on plans of the Russian leader to visit the South Kuriles
again.
Masaharu Kono told reporters at Narita airport that he "is returning
to Moscow, since all aims set for the period of his temporary stay in
Tokyo have been fulfilled". He also expressed a desire to fulfil
vigorously his ambassadorial functions, including discussion of questions
on preparing a possible meeting between Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister
Naoto Kan in Yokohama.
The Japanese ambassador to Russia, temporarily summoned to Tokyo, has
flown to the place of his work in Moscow. This move drew a line under the
diplomatic conflict, initiated by the Japanese authorities after Medvedev'
s trip to the South Kuriles that Tokyo regards as its "northern
territories".
According to earlier reports, to express discontent with Moscow, the
ambassador would have stayed in Tokyo till the end of the APEC summit.
However, the Japanese government drew a conclusion that it would be more
expedient to return the ambassador to Russia to prepare a possible
bilateral meeting between the Russian president and the Japanese premier
Naoto Kan on the sidelines of the APEC summit.
Thus, Tokyo would like to put an end to the tension that has developed
in the recent past in relations between the two nations. Kono is expected
to arrive in Moscow this Sunday.
-0-bur/kud