TOKYO, September 10. /TASS/. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi agrees that relations between Tokyo and Moscow are important, Muneo Suzuki, a member of the upper house of parliament from Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, told TASS following a private meeting with the head of the government.
"I pointed out to her the importance of Japan-Russia relations. The prime minister also said that Japan-Russia relations are important," the lawmaker noted.
Earlier, the Kyodo news agency reported that Suzuki and Takaichi "exchanged views" on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent trip to Iturup Island during the meeting. However, during his conversation with a TASS correspondent, the lawmaker denied this information, emphasizing that the topic had not been raised. He added that he mainly discussed the upcoming election in Okinawa with the prime minister.
On August 13, Putin visited Iturup in person for the first time. Prior to that, Dmitry Medvedev had traveled to the Kuril Islands as head of state in 2010. He also visited the islands in 2012, 2015, and 2019 as prime minister. In 2021, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin visited Iturup. The Russian president’s trip drew a sharp reaction from Japanese authorities.
