Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov agreed Saturday to continue talks on concluding a peace treaty to end World War II until the summit between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin takes place later this month.

"It's not easy to bring closer the principal positions of the parties; the problem is complicated," Lavrov said at a joint news conference following the talks in Moscow, underscoring the difficulty in resolving a dispute over islands off Hokkaido that are held by Russia but claimed by Japan.

Lavrov also said that there should not be excessive expectations for immediate progress in settling the issue and that bilateral work will continue and be reported to the two leaders, who will meet on Dec. 15 and 16 in Japan.