Japan and Russia are arranging a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Group of Eight summit scheduled for June 17 and 18 in Northern Ireland, according to a government source in Tokyo.
Abe believes it is vital to build a relationship of trust with Putin to move forward territorial talks over four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido seized by Soviet forces at the end of the war, the source said.
During the upcoming meeting, the two leaders are expected to reaffirm the goal of holding territorial talks at the vice ministerial level as agreed upon in their talks in April in Moscow. Tokyo hopes to arrange talks in Russia after the G-8 summit by month's end, the source said.