TOKYO (RIA Novosti): Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will not travel to Russia in September because he did not receive an invitation from the organizers of the Eastern Economic Forum , Kyodo news agency reported, citing multiple government sources.
The possibility of a visit to Russia to participate in the WEF was discussed in the government, and Prime Minister Suga was positive about this trip. However, due to the fact that he did not receive an invitation, the visit will not take place.
“The invitation was not received. Probably, this is the decision of the Russian side,” the agency quotes the words of a high-ranking official of the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
The agency also cites the opinion of a source in diplomatic circles that Russia may seek to negotiate with the administration for the long term, and with respect to the Prime Minister, around whom centrifugal processes are intensifying before the elections to the lower house of parliament, she decided to keep her distance.
Kyodo reports that back in mid-July, at a meeting with deputy Muneo Suzuki, Prime Minister Suga expressed a positive attitude towards the possibility of a visit, and during a telephone conversation between the foreign ministers on August 11, the parties agreed on the need to agree on opportunities for a personal meeting of the leaders of the two countries.
At the same time, more pessimistic views arose in the Japanese government about the possibility of such a visit in connection with Russia’s plans to create a special economic zone in the Kuril Islands.
The Eastern Economic Forum will be held in Vladivostok on September 2-4. RIA Novosti is the general information partner of the WEF. The previous head of the Japanese government, Shinzo Abe , came to the WEF for four years in a row since 2016.
