Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Monday in Indonesia on the sidelines of a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum to apparently discuss a range of issues, including a bilateral territorial dispute.
The talks in Bali are the fourth direct contact between the Abe and Putin over the past seven months. In past meetings, the two leaders built mutual trust on resolving the dispute, which has prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty to end World War II, a Japanese official said.
On Bali, they are expected to agree to improve security relations via dialogue involving their foreign and defense ministers.