Putin, Abe seek progress on island row

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe today tried to make headway on a lingering territorial dispute as they sought to boost trade, but failed to make a breakthrough.
Tokyo-Moscow relations are hamstrung by a row dating back to the end of World War II when Soviet troops seized the southernmost islands in the Pacific Kuril chain, known as the Northern Territories in Japan.
The tensions have prevented the countries from signing a peace treaty formally ending wartime hostilities, hindering trade and investment ties.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters that the leaders had discussed the disputed islands at talks that had focused on boosting trade ties but remained vague on the prospects of solving the conflict.

"We are now sensing the readiness of our Japanese partners to discuss issues tied to joint business activities on the islands," Lavrov said, adding that the countries were also mulling humanitarian cooperation.
Abe's visit to Russia - his second this year - comes days after the Kremlin announced that Putin will travel to Japan in December, his first trip there since 2005.

Putin said in an interview with Bloomberg News ahead of the talks that Moscow was seeking a "solution where neither party will feel... Defeated or a loser."
"We are not talking about some kind of exchange or some kind of sale," he said.

Putin said signing a peace treaty with Japan was a "key issue" and that Moscow "would very much like to find a solution to this problem with our Japanese friends."
Over the years, leaders from the two nations have tried to make progress on resolving the row but a solution has proved elusive.
The two sides, meeting on the sidelines of an economic forum in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, had expressed the hope of easing some of the tensions surrounding the contested islands.
"I'm resolved to make progress on the peace treaty and territorial issues by holding candid and thorough talks with President Putin," Abe told reporters before he set off for Vladivostok.

Experts view recent rapprochement efforts as a positive development for Moscow's trade ties with stalwart US ally Tokyo, but doubt they will result in a resolution of their territorial dispute.
"Japan is not ready to drop its claims to the islands and Russia will by no means recognise them," Russian political analyst Konstantin Kalachev said.