Trade and foreign ministry officials from Japan visited Russia this week and discussed with their counterparts the protection of Japanese corporate assets in the country amid its prolonged war against Ukraine, one of the officials said Wednesday.
At a press conference in Moscow, a senior trade ministry official noted that more than 100 Japanese companies maintain bases in Russia even after it launched a full-scale invasion of its neighboring country in 2022, a development that prompted Tokyo to impose financial sanctions against Moscow that remain in place.
The official said the two-day discussions through Wednesday with officials from the Russian ministries of economic development and trade concerned the protection of such assets and restrictions on money transfers, and that they were “practical and constructive.”
The official noted that Japanese officials have visited Russia on multiple occasions since the invasion began.
According to trade minister Ryosei Akazawa, the officials visiting Moscow were Masayoshi Arai, director-general of the Trade Policy Bureau at the trade ministry, and Masaki Ishikawa, deputy director-general of the European Affairs Bureau at the Foreign Ministry.
Speaking at a press conference in Tokyo on Wednesday, Akazawa denied that the visit signaled future economic cooperation between the two countries.
Meanwhile, an official of a business group made up of major Russian companies said the group’s officials held a closed-door meeting with Japanese visitors on Tuesday.
A Russian Foreign Ministry official had said earlier that the government was not inviting senior Japanese government officials to the country.
Japanese sources familiar with the matter said the Japanese government likely lobbied the Japanese companies to include its officials.
© KYODO
