Khaldon Azhari

TOKYO: Japan, the G7 and the international community must work together by applying strong sanctions against Russia to stop its aggression against Ukraine and withdraw its forces from that country soon as possible,  Japanese foreign minister Yoshimasa Hayashi has said.

“Aggression by Russia against Ukraine is an attempt to change the status quo by force, an act that shakes the foundations of international order, and is a clear violation of international law and intolerable. We condemn it strongly,” Hayashi said in a press conference on 25 March, replying to a question from Arab News Japan on whether diplomacy offers any way to end the war.

The G7 leaders meeting in Belgium on March 24 confirmed the enforcement of sanctions, indicating no intention to seek a diplomatic approach toward Russia, analysts say.

According to Minister Hayashi, G7 will impose more sanctions against Russia within a week. These will include revocation of most favored nation status, submitting bills to revise legislation to add 81 additional Russian military groups and oligarchs to the scope of sanctions, and introducing an export ban on luxury goods to Russia. 

Moreover, to deal with the avoidance of sanctions through the use of digital assets, the Japanese government is now making preparations to enact a bill to revise existing legislation, in addition to which, today, a cabinet decision was taken to freeze assets belonging to Russia related persons.