Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi is hoping to inject fresh momentum into bilateral peace treaty negotiations with Russia by holding talks with her Russian counterpart, Igor Ivanov, on the sidelines of the upcoming meeting of the Group of Eight foreign ministers in Canada, sources said Saturday.
Kawaguchi plans to dispatch European Affairs Bureau chief Yasuo Saito and Russia Division head Toyohisa Uetsuki to Russia this week to arrange the agenda for the ministerial meeting, according to the sources.
If and when her talks with Ivanov materialize, Kawaguchi hopes to reiterate Japan's position to simultaneously press forward on three fronts: conclusion of a peace treaty, economic cooperation and cooperation in the international arena, the sources said.