Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov failed Tuesday to set a date for President Vladimir Putin's long-delayed visit to Japan as the two countries remained "poles apart" over the bilateral territorial row.
Machimura said during a joint news conference after the Tokyo meeting that Japan and Russia still agree that Putin's visit would take place by the end of the year and that the date will be set "in the near future."
Although Putin was initially expected to visit early this year, the trip has been delayed by the two countries's sharp divisions on the long-standing dispute over Russian-held islands off Hokkaido.