TOKYO, July 29 (RIA Novosti) – Tokyo has not made a decision on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit planned to Japan in the fall as a comprehensive analysis of all factors is needed, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Tuesday.
“So far, nothing has been decided on President Putin’s visit. [This issue] will be considered in its entirety, taking into account the whole scope of factors. This is our point of view,” Suga said at a news conference.
The chief cabinet secretary’s comments were made a day after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow assumes that the agreements on Putin’s visit in Japan remain in effect.
In February, Putin agreed to pay an official visit Japan in the fall. Up until recently there was a positive dynamic in Japanese-Russian relations, but on Monday Tokyo released a list of new sanctions against Russia over the crisis in Ukraine that raised concerns over the planned visit.
The sanctions presuppose the freezing of assets of individuals “involved in Crimea annexation and responsible for destabilizing the situation in Ukraine.” Japan will also be implementing new projects in Russia in accordance with the policy set by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development adopted by the European Union. There will be limitations on the goods imported from Crimea.
