The Russian Division of the Japanese Foreign Ministry told Sputnik on Thursday that it has not been decided yet whether a reported meeting between Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov takes place next week, adding that the two parties are currently coordinating the details.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th September, 2018) The Russian Division of the Japanese Foreign Ministry told Sputnik on Thursday that it has not been decided yet whether a reported meeting between Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov takes place next week, adding that the two parties are currently coordinating the details.
Earlier on Thursday, media reported that Kono and Lavrov planned to hold talks next week to discuss Russian President Vladimir Putin's proposal to conclude a bilateral peace treaty by the end of the year without any preconditions.
"It has not been decided yet [whether the meeting takes place]. We are in the middle of coordinating this," the division's spokesperson said, when asked if the ministry could confirm the media reports about the possible meeting between the two ministers.
Last week, Putin proposed at a plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) that a peace treaty with Japan should be signed by the end of the year without any preconditions. Speaking about the issue of the four disputed South Kuril Islands, Putin suggested including a provision on Moscow and Tokyo's commitment to resolve the issue within the text of the document.
