Russia talks islands with Japan

Mori arrives in Russia to try to settle the dispute which has prevented both countries from signing a WWII peace treaty

IRKUTSK, Russia -- Russia and Japan have begun talks to try to settle the fate of four rocky islands, claimed by both countries.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori are meeting in the Russian city of Irkutsk to talk about the islands.

A failure to settle the dispute has stopped the two countries from ever signing a World War Two peace treaty.

Russia seized the islands, lying 15 km (nine miles) off Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido, in the last days of the war.

Since then Japan has demanded the four, which it calls the Northern Territories, be handed back to them.

Russia calls the islands the Kurils.

Symbolic progress

Although the islands lie 1,000 miles (600 km) north of Tokyo and are of little strategic and economic value, they have been the center of decades of talks and broken promises.

In 1997, the two countries pledged to sign a peace treaty by the end of 2000, but failed.

Mori, almost certain to leave office soon, told reporters on his way to Irkutsk he hoped the talks would provide a new impetus to solve the drawn-out dispute.

"I hope our negotiations will be a new stimulus and a new turning point," Mori said before arriving to a low-key welcome in sub-zero temperatures.

Declaration

Mori has said both sides would reaffirm their commitment to a 1956 declaration under which Moscow agreed to hand back two islands once a peace treaty was signed.

"We will use the 1956 declaration as the basis for negotiations to get all four islands back," he said.

But the Russians have only described the declaration as "one of several ways to pursue a solution."

Analysts have said they remain skeptical about the latest round of talks.

They say neither side expects much more than symbolic progress on a dispute acknowledged to be an emotional issue with nationalist lobbies ready to exploit anything that might be seen as a concession.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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