Japanese Prime Minister may visit Russia in MayApril 6, 2016 - 18:36 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may visit Russia in May for a long-awaited meeting with President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said Wednesday, April 6, according to the Associated Press. "Such a possibility is being considered," Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. Abe has sought to make progress in a dispute over Russian-held islands that are called the southern Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan. The dispute has kept the two countries from signing a peace treaty ending their World War II hostilities. Japanese and Russian media have reported a possible visit and there was renewed diplomatic activity on Wednesday to prepare for one, but there has been no confirmation from either side. The Kremlin-loyal Izvestia newspaper, citing diplomatic sources, reported Wednesday that Abe may meet Putin in Sochi on May 6. Tomomi Inada, a senior lawmaker of Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party who is visiting Moscow, held talks Wednesday with Trade and Industry Minister Denis Manturov and handed him a letter from Abe to Putin, according to Kyodo News. Inada told Manturov that this year will be an important one for Japan-Russia relations, Kyodo quoted her as saying. Also Wednesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was headed to Tokyo, where he would meet with his Japanese counterpart on April 15 to discuss preparations for a meeting between the two leaders. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Pashinyan visits flood-hit region Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday, June 8 visited the disaster area in the Lori province. €3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms. Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. |