Japan, RF to seek mutually acceptable solution to territorial row.

(updates)
11/2 Tass 258

MOSCOW, February 11 (Itar-Tass) -- Russia and Japan are still having
major disagreements on the territorial problem related to the South Kurile
Islands, but are ready to seek a mutually acceptable solution and to
negotiate it in the calm way. The Moscow negotiations between the foreign
ministries of the countries had the foresaid results on Friday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a joint press conference
after the negotiations that he "told his Japanese counterpart that the
incidents, which occurred on the so-called day of northern territories in
Japan, marred the general climate of our relations and does not contribute
to their constructive development."
"When the radical approaches towards a peace treaty with Russia are
taking the upper hand in Japan that takes place from time to time,
meanwhile, the Japanese top officials share these approaches, certainly,
any negotiations on this problem are futile in such conditions," Lavrov
believes.
He told "Mr. Maehara that we are still inclined to work on a peace
treaty, but without preliminary unilateral historical links and historians
should discuss difficult problems in our common history." "We would be
interested to create a commission of historians in the way we did with
several our neighboring countries," the Russian minister noted.
He also expressed interest "in all the problems in Russian-Japanese
relations to be settled in a calm and friendly way." "Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev stated repeatedly our readiness to develop the closest
economic, humanitarian and any other cooperation with Japan, particularly
on any Kurile island," the Russian foreign minister recalled.
The Japanese counterpart confirmed the readiness for a constructive
dialogue, but noted that "the territorial problem remains unsettled in our
relations." "Our positions are different on this problem," Maehara said,
calling these positions "parallel" without any common points for agreement.
The position of the Japanese government is that "the northern
territories are original Japanese territories in terms of history and the
view, which is recognized on the international scene."
"Under the reached agreements and the principles of lawfulness and
justice the countries should seek mutually acceptable solutions," the
Japanese foreign minister noted.
"We should negotiate this problem in the calm way. We confirmed this
today," Maehara said with confidence.
-0-baz/mil


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