TOKYO, May 8 (UPI) -- Japan's prime minister was expected be in Moscow this week to attend World War II events and to ask the Russian president to visit Japan.
Japanese officials said Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is expected to ask President Vladimir Putin to plan a trip to Japan as soon as possible to work towards resolving a long-standing territorial dispute, the Kyodo news service reported Sunday.
The premier is also expected to hold brief bilateral talks with one or more leaders attending the Moscow WWII commemoration, possibly including U.S. President George W. Bush, the officials said.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said the trip is an opportunity for Tokyo and Moscow to "further develop bilateral relations."
A formal peace treaty between Japan and Russia has been delayed by the dispute over islands off Hokkaido that were seized by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II, but that are claimed by Japan.
