politics

Abe, Putin end summit with little to show on isles row

28 Comments
By Kiyoshi Takenaka and Katya Golubkova

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016.

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.


28 Comments
Login to comment

Yeah, and the sky is blue.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Well done again Russians !!! You duped the Japanese into giving you free aid, Again. The Japanese people do not understand that Russia will not give the islands back. What is Mr. Abe thinking?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Mr.Putin has say NO to Japan about the isles return and this is happening on Japan's soil, is it the time to realise such an embarassment ?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

At this point, Japan is as likely to get back those 4 islands as Germany is to get back Kaliningrad, or what used to be known as East Prussia. It seems like the eternal hope for Japan's hardliners on this matter is that because Russia in their minds is such a desperate economic basket case it will eventually give in and offer to sell those 4 southernmost of the Kuril Islands at a bargain basement price a la Tsarist Russia selling Alaska for only $7.2 million to the USA in 1867.

But re those islands we know Russia wouldn't do such a thing even in 1998, when its economy hit absolute rock-bottom and was in a much worse state than it is today. Note also that in 1998, according to The Economist, the economy of Japan was larger than the combined GDP of Britain, France, Italy, and Canada. Japan's GDP in 2016 is now far smaller than the output of those 4 countries. So Japan's time for lording over other countries as if it's an economic colossus has long since passed.

And if Russia ever offers to sell those 4 islands to Japan, you know Putin & Co. will demand that Japan pay an intolerably high amount of money. If Japan's government acts as if those 4 islands are as valuable as solid gold, then why not demand an outrageous sum?

4 ( +4 / -0 )

It is difficult to get back lands taken by a lost war. Putin said an interesting thing which today's Japanese do not realize well. Japan seized the lower half of the Sakhalin islands when Japan won the Russo-Japanese war in 1905 and got rid of Russians who were living there.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

What a waste all round

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Of course there will be "little to show". The only aspect of life Russia is interested in is grabbing as much land as it can, Who the hell is surprised?.

-6 ( +1 / -7 )

In Soviet Russia, he doesn't give to you, you give in to him! Just ask Crimea. Just ask Trump.

Yep, of course because of that terrible russians. But what about that Russia solved territorial dusputes with China(380 sq km area) in 2004 and with Norway(175000 sq km area) in 2010? Russia has common borders with 18 countries and only with 3 of them has territorial disputes. Japan has territorial disputes with all neighbours, even there are not so much of neighbours.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

And, as predicted, Putin played Abe and Japan like a fiddle, and now Abe -- who vowed to settle the issue and get the islands back (ALL of them!) has to figure out how he can try to play things at home. Now his own right-wing is angry at him, and there's nothing he can do on top of ALSO trying to figure out how he can say to the UN and US they still support sanctions while undermining them with the new economic cooperation.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Despite strong pressure from the Abe administration, companies remain wary of the risk of doing business in Russia, said a Japanese official involved in summit preparations.

Russia is unlikely to get what it wants from Japan: major investments. Especially since Putin remains vague and is not making any concessions. The investments have to come from major companies who are aware of and have not forgotten and continue to be reminded today of soviet treachery. Abe won't be able to force them into risky business deals with Russia under Putin. As long as Putin has nothing more to offer than words Japan's large corporations won't commit.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

What we call this, its not news when "we"knew what was going to happen, reporting I guess. Japan has just soiled its self by allowing POS on it land. No amount of washing will get the smell out.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

In the Q & A session,the Japanese journalist from Hokkaido asked Abe about the Northern Territories issue, but the next journalist, Russian, asked Putin about the situation in Aleppo, Syria. Fortunately, the Russians both spoke in Russian, nor were the translation of their words aired on the Internet.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Japan has zippo, nada, zero leverage.

This is Putin. PUTIN! Of the KGB!

In Soviet Russia, he doesn't give to you, you give in to him! Just ask Crimea. Just ask Trump.

Abe, you have a cute military that's green surrounded by countries that eat cute militaries for breakfast. It's best you call it a day on getting these islands back.

11 ( +11 / -0 )

I watched an Abe smirking. Does he really know who Putin is? I would cross the road if I saw Putin coming.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Will there be a peace agreement?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Some friend of the West......gives Vlad an escape from his isolation for nothing in return. This shouldn't be forgotten by other G-7 members.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

From what I gather today (Friday afternoon), Abe did gain a free trip to Moscow where he is to meet Putin again in the near future. Also, it was reported on TV that some kind of a deal might have been reached on allowing former islanders to visit the four disputed islands, but did not pick up the exact details of such a deal. Otherwise... secrecy, secrecy, secrecy ...

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Signing of 68 agreements during the current visit of Mr Putin is the biggest achievement of PM Abe to consolidate the economic ties between Japan and Russia. It is historic .Russia has never signed so many agreements during the foreign visit of any of its leaders in the past decades with any country.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Historically, Japan and China have always been the two strongest rivals in the Asia-Pacific and Russia is hoping to capitalize on that history. As it stands now, what forms an obstacle to these Russian desires is Japan’s position in the U.S.-Japan alliance. Due to current Russian-American tensions over Ukraine and Syria, Russia can only move so far in improving its Japanese relations which in turn would result in less investment risk from the Japanese perspective.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Putin has his pet in the White House now. Any reason for him to compromise on this has vanished.

7 ( +11 / -4 )

“Putin has given away absolutely nothing and, in return, he has received the offer of enhanced economic cooperation. Just as valuably, he has demonstrated divisions in G-7 (Group of Seven) policy on Russia and has encouraged Japan to distance itself from U.S. policy,”

I said this would happen! There are no politicians in the LDP that have ANY diplomatic skills. They were all raised with silver spoons in their mouths. Abe stupidly fell in love with his own image and thought he could take on the most dangerous politician alive today. Hell, if veteran politicians like Obama and Kerry got schooled by this scumbag what did that idiot Abe hope to accomplish?? He has distanced himself from the US and got nothing, absolutely nothing, in return. Jackass.

Putin, however, does not want to tarnish his domestic image as a staunch defender of Russian sovereignty.

Putin cannot tarnish his domestic image as a Russian nationalist because if he loses THAT, its over for him. He's tanked his country's economy and politically isolated it. So without his nationalist stance, what else does he have? Abe cant understand that because he never had to rise through the muck to become a politician like the russian and the western politicians have. He's never had to fight for anything. And he wants to take on Putin?? Of all the world leaders, this guy is the most dangerous. I said Abe was going to get his butt spanked, and the spanking has begun. He's a rat trying to fight a tiger. He has no chance.

Is anyone surprised ?

Only an idiot would be.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites