「英語リーディング筋トレ―これで英字新聞も怖くない！」　第2記事

情報源：The Japan Times Online 2004年2月8日

Koizumi awaits progress in Russia-held isles row（小泉首相、北方領土問題の進展待つ）

By REIJI YOSHIDA
Staff writer

Japan Timesの正式な「使用権」を得て掲載されています。

With Russian President Vladimir Putin expected to consolidate his political position with a victory in next month's presidential elections, it is more likely that Russia will try to solve a long-standing territorial dispute with Japan, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Saturday.

The remarks came during an annual government-sponsored convention to seek the return of four islands off Hokkaido, which were occupied by the then Soviet Union at the end of World War II and are still held by Russia.

"I have the impression that President Putin has realized that solving the Northern Territories issue, and thereby concluding a peace treaty (with Japan), would not only be in the interests of Japan, but also in the interests of Russia," Koizumi told the audience at Kudan Kaikan hall in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.

"I believe that Mr. Putin, with a more stable (political) base, will want to solve the problems between Japan and Russia," said Koizumi, who deviated from the text of a speech prepared by bureaucrats in advance.

The four islands -- Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai group of islets -- are known as the Southern Kurils in Russia.

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi, who also attended the meeting, reiterated her intention to visit Russia in the first half of this year to hold talks with her counterpart about the territorial dispute, which has prevented the two nations from formally signing a peace treaty to end World War II.

"Solving the Northern Territories issue is one of the biggest policy pillars for the Foreign Ministry," Kawaguchi said.

Putin is widely expected to be re-elected in March for a second term, further strengthening his political base at home. The Japanese government believes there is a good chance that progress can be made in the dispute after his re-election.

A senior Japanese government official said Tokyo is in the process of inviting the Russian president to Japan after the March election, with the most likely timing for such a visit being the fall of this year.