Japan military chief to pay working visit to Russia

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Chief of Joint Staff of Japan Self Defense Force General Shigeru Iwasaki will pay a working visit to Russia on June 26-28, the Russian Defense Ministry said, according to RIA Novosti.

“The agenda of the visit includes talks with the chief of Russia's Armed Forces General Staff, Gen. Nikolai Makarov,” the ministry said in a statement.

The sides are expected to discuss bilateral military cooperation, security in the Asia-Pacific region and other issues of mutual interest.

The Japanese military delegation will visit a motorized infantry brigade in Alabino and a military pilot training center in Kubinka, both in the Moscow region.

Curiously enough, Russia and Japan have yet to sign a formal peace treaty ending World War II hostilities, due to the dispute over the four South Kuril Islands, former Japanese territory annexed by the Soviet Union at the end of the war.

The territorial dispute over the islands, which Japan calls the Northern Territories, has clouded relations between Moscow and Tokyo for decades.