Tokyo: Japan will deal with matters related to Russia appropriately from the standpoint of national interest, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Friday.

Matsuno made the comments at a press conference after Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Moscow is open to dialogue with Tokyo if Japan asks for it.

The immediate priority is to get Russia to stop its invasion of Ukraine as soon as possible, Matsuno said. “We’ll continue to push ahead with severe sanctions in cooperation with the international community,” he said.

JIJI Press