Japan, Russia to enhance bilateral ties

The foreign ministers of Japan and Russia have agreed to strengthen economic and security cooperation but made no progress on resolving a long-standing territorial dispute over islands off northeastern Japan.Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba and visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Saturday the two countries need to address the territorial row in a calm manner.The dispute over the islands called the southern Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan has kept the two nations from forging a peace treaty after World War II.The islands were seized by Soviet troops in the closing days of the war. They are surrounded by rich fishing grounds.Gemba said concluding a peace treaty with Russia is more urgent than ever.