Peace Treaty: Russia Controls and Japan Russia

peace treaty: The disagreement over the territories, which Russia controls, has prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty that could help transform relations. ; Russian President Vladimir Putin is sticking to demands that Tokyo first acknowledge Moscow's sovereignty over the islands, which were seized by the Soviet Red Army in 1945, according to The Japan Times. He and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed in November to negotiate on the basis of a 1956 declaration under which the Soviet Union would return two islands following a peace accord, though they failed to make a breakthrough at a meeting in Moscow last month. Negotiations are deadlocked, according to three officials from Japan and Russia, speaking on condition of anonymity because the matter is confidential. The fate of the remaining two islands is the biggest sticking point, with Tokyo unwilling to give up its claims on them, a Japanese official said. The two leaders, who've met 25 times since 2012, ordered Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Japanese counterpart Taro Kono to continue discussions on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference this weekend. Putin's offer is the best deal that could be on the table, but there doesn't seem to be much hope left now, said Andrei Kortunov, head of the Russian International Affairs Council, a research group set up by the Kremlin. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.