MOSCOW. Nov 3 (Interfax) - Russian-Japanese relations will not be compounded by Tokyo's demarche which saw Japan recalling its ambassador from Moscow over the Russian president's visit to the Kurils Islands, said Elgena Molodyakova of the Center for Japanese Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies.
This step is meant for Japanese voters as a demonstration by the current Japanese government of its willingness to solve the problem of "the Northern territories," she said.
"The Democratic Party of Japan, which came to power after spending a very long time in the opposition, got used to making hasty and strong statements. It has still not gotten rid of this habit. It is an outburst of emotions, and the fact that Democrats, who received an enormous advance of voters' trust ahead of the elections, are now trying to avail of the situation plays a big role here," Molodyakova told Interfax on Tuesday.
This demarche should not be seen as a serious foreign-policy step towards Russia, the expert said. "This is for internal use, for voters to whom the Japanese government wants to show its ability to act on such problems," Molodyakova said.
Overall, although this gesture on the part of Japan will not lead to serious complications between Moscow and Tokyo, it points to a deep crisis in the current Japanese foreign policy towards Russia, she said.
"This position by Tokyo attests to the bankruptcy of the Japanese diplomacy on Russia. Japan has effectively endorsed the total helplessness of its policy. Demarches such as recalling an ambassador have not been seen between the countries even during the events in Hasan and Halkin Gol [clashes between the Soviet and Japanese armies in the Far East in 1938 and 1939]," Molodyakova said.