Putin Aides to Visit Japan to Pave Way for Summit Talks

Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)--Three of Russian President Vladimir Putin's aides will visit Japan this month and next, ahead of the Russian leader's arrival for talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, scheduled for December. Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich plans to attend an international conference on science and technology in the western city of Kyoto from Sunday. Valentina Matviyenko, chair of the Federation Council, and First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov are scheduled to arrive in Japan late this month and in November, respectively. Matviyenko, the first woman to take the current post, is the second in the presidential line of succession in Russia, after Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. Putin is seen putting a strong faith in her as she once served as governor of St. Petersburg, his hometown. Matviyenko will visit Japan at her own request to pay a courtesy call on Chuichi Date, president of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, Japan's parliament, but she might hold talks with Abe. Shuvalov, 49, who has a reputation for practical business ability, is regarded as a candidate to succeed Medvedev. He is slated to hold a meeting with Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Hiroshige Seko in Tokyo to discuss an eight-point program for Japan-Russia economic cooperation. Meanwhile, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Seko will visit Russia soon in a bid to nurture public opinion in favor of resolving a bilateral territorial dispute over four Russian-controlled northwestern Pacific islands, called the Northern Territories in Japan. The wrangling over the islands, which were seized by Soviet troops in the closing days of World War II, has prevented Japan and Russia to conclude a peace treaty to put a formal end to their wartime hostilities. Kishida is slated to hold talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, to push for progress in the peace treaty negotiations and discuss other political matters. Seko will meet with a minister in charge of economic affairs. Also, Shotaro Yachi, head of the secretariat of Japan's National Security Council and a foreign policy adviser to Abe, is expected to visit Russia. Furthermore, a working-level meeting will be held between the Japanese and Russian vice foreign ministers. Stressing that resolving the issue of the Northern Territories and concluding a peace treaty are one of the priority challenges in Japan's diplomacy, Kishida said at a press conference on Friday that he is willing to put considerable energy into them. END