Japan and Russia have agreed to start new working-level talks regarding joint economic activity on the four disputed islands off Hokkaido, Foreign Ministry officials said.
The director-level task force, launched separately from an existing working-level dialogue involving higher-level officials, is intended to boost coordination on the territorial dispute ahead of a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Vladimir Putin. The meeting is planned for June on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit.
A major breakthrough on the issue appears unlikely during the summit, with Russia showing no signs of budging on Japan's proposal that the two smallest islands be handed over.