IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Japan

Abe aims to visit Russia for talks

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Tuesday he hoped to visit Russia early next year to speed up talks to resolve a territorial dispute and conclude a peace treaty officially ending World War II hostilities between the two countries. Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin met for two days of talks last week and struck economic deals but failed to achieve a breakthrough on the territorial dispute over a string of islands. The islands, called the Southern Kuriles in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan, were seized by Soviet forces at the end of the war.