Chief Cabinet Secretary of the Japanese government has expressed optimism that a possible solution will emerge to resolve the long-standing territorial dispute with Russia under the new hopeful Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Dispute over a few islands -Kunashiri, Etorofu, Shikotan and the Habomai islet groups - has prevented the two countries from concluding a postwar peace treaty for a long time1.

While marking the 89th anniversary of the 1919 popular uprising against Japanese colonial rule over the Korean peninsula, the South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak said that “South Korea and Japan should also try to foster a future-oriented relationship with a pragmatic attitude.” Reiterating that both Japan and South Korea face similar challenges today, Lee noted that ‘pragmatism’ should be the dominant theme in all fields ranging from politics to economics and security to diplomacy2.

• 1. “Japan hopes to work with Medvedev to solve territorial dispute,” Japan Today, March 3, 2008, at http://www.japantoday.com/jp/news/429877
• 2. “S Korean president calls for closer ties with Japan,” Japan Today, March 1, 2008, at http://www.japantoday.com/jp/news/429774