Japanese and Russian officials plan to hold talks around March 14 in Tokyo on how to proceed with joint economic projects on Russian-held islands at the center of a decades-old bilateral territorial dispute, a Japanese government source said Tuesday.

A new body that will study the feasibility of such projects was established earlier the same day.

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said at the outset of its first meeting that “holding discussions about joint economic activities would be a big plus” toward concluding a post-World War II peace treaty between the two countries.