Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba expressed hope Saturday that former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori will play a role in negotiations with Russia on the long-standing territorial dispute between the two countries.
Genba told reporters traveling with him in Morocco that Mori "is the only person in (Japan's) current political circles who is acquainted with" Vladimir Putin, who is set to return to the Russian presidential post Monday.
The foreign minister said Mori, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, the largest opposition party, which relinquished power to the Democratic Party of Japan in the 2009 general election, has "deep insights" into the territorial issue.