Japan believes its interpretation of a 1956 joint declaration with the then Soviet Union that stipulates two of the four disputed islands off Hokkaido be returned to Japan after a peace treaty is signed is the same as Russia's, Foreign Minister Yohei Kono said Friday.

At a regular news conference after the day's Cabinet meeting, Kono referred to press reports stating that Russia had indicated it cannot accept the Japanese interpretation of the declaration. Japan's interpretation is that the return of the two other islands -- Kunashiri and Etorofu -- should continue to be discussed after Shikotan and the Habomai islets are returned first.

Senior Japanese and Russian officials are currently negotiating in Moscow on the territorial dispute. Aleksandr Losyukov, Russian deputy foreign minister, said in an interview with Kyodo News that the 1956 pact was "a final resolution" to the dispute and that Tokyo's interpretation was not acceptable.

Kono said officials of the two countries should discuss the interpretation of the 1956 declaration in the ongoing talks, but added, "We consider (the 1956 declaration) as a historical fact, and we do not believe there is a difference in interpretation."

Subsequent agreements stipulate that the fate of all four islands must be settled before the two nations conclude a peace treaty. Tokyo, however, has shifted its stance from demanding all four islands be returned immediately to accepting the initial return of two islands, with an assurance that the remaining two would be returned at a later date.

Russia holds line

MOSCOW (Kyodo) A senior Russian government official indicated Thursday that Russia has no immediate plan to formally propose returning two of the disputed islands off Hokkaido to Japan, the ITAR-Tass news agency said.

The agency said Alexander Losyukov, deputy foreign minister in charge of the Asia-Pacific region, outlined the Russian position in a meeting with Kazuhiko Togo, director general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's European and Oceanian Affairs Bureau.

Losyukov reportedly affirmed the validity of the 1956 Japan-Soviet declaration but observed that "there is no agreement" over the Soviet proposal in the declaration to return Shikotan and the Habomai islets to Japan.

Losyukov also told Tass that the two governments have yet to decide on a schedule for a proposed visit to Russia by Foreign Minister Yohei Kono that was intended to pave the way for a visit to Moscow by Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori.

Losyukov and Togo planned to meet again Friday.

Prior to Thursday's session, Losyukov told Tass that Russia is ready to hold negotiations with Japan over the territorial issue on the basis of the 1956 joint declaration, but the position of the two countries is different on the matter as Japan is demanding the return of all the disputed islands.

The islands, occupied by Soviet troops at the end of World War II, also include Etorofu and Kunashiri, two larger islands north of Shikotan and the Habomai group.

RIA news agency reported earlier Thursday that Russia opposes negotiations on a bilateral peace treaty with Japan, progress on which would pave the way for Mori's visit to the country by year's end.

The report quoted Russian diplomatic sources as saying Moscow has not shown readiness to make concessions in the peace negotiations, which have been held up by the territorial dispute.

Mori agreed during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in November in Brunei that he would visit Irkutsk, eastern Siberia, possibly by the end of the year if any progress is made on peace treaty negotiations.