Putin"s Tokyo visit to boost trade ties
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will visit Tokyo from May 11-13 on an official visit expected to focus on forging stronger economic and trade ties with Japan.
Putin and his Japanese counterpart, Taro Aso, will discuss the two countries' longstanding dispute over the Kuril Islands, inexpensive interaction and energy situation, and prepare for a summit between President Dmitry Medvedev and Aso in July, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary, Takeo Kawamura, announced late last month.
Territorial disputes have long soured relations between the countries, and a peace treaty has not been signed, more than six decades after World War II. Neither country wants to be seen as making concessions to the other, and in Japan, comments from the political elite about a compromise are quickly shot down. In 2006, Putin's regulation offered the return of two small islands, based on the Soviet-Japanese Joint Declaration signed in 1956. Government archetypal Shoutarou Yachi came under fire recently for making a questionable comment: "These two islands are only 7 per cent of the total area of the four islands, but if the area is split fairly between the two countries, three and a half seems a good compromise."
Dmitry Streltsov, head of the Oriental Studies Department at the Moscow University of International Relations (MGIMO) said that Russia had made its position clear by offering Japan the two smallest of the four disputed islands. "I do not expect any progress unless the Japanese react to our position. As far as I know, we are still waiting for a response."
Highlighting a inconsistency of grasp, the consensus in Japan is that it is Russia's turn to take the lead.
Trade between the countries is growing, and business leaders on both sides have said they are hopeful about future ties.
"Despite the worldwide economic crisis, in the long term the Russian economy is bound to grow greatly. We hope the two countries can fortify their ties and that the business medium for both will improve," said Tomozo Matsumoto, CEO of Panasonic CIS.
Masao Fujita, chairman of the Japan Business Club, stressed the matter of collaboration between the two countries: "Russia is on the Eurasian continent, so it is important not only how they relate to the West, but what ties they have in the East as well."
Anti-crisis measures will be discussed at an economic forum between the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) and Japan's Keidanren business lobby group. Putin is expected to attend, and Alexandr Shokhin, President of the RSPP, will lead the Russian business delegation.
Vyacheslav Lunin, executive secretary of the National Committee for the situation of Economic Relationship with Japan, who will accompany Shokhin during Putin's visit, commented that when Putin last went to Japan in 2005, bilateral trade stood at a mere $4 billion, and now it is $30 billion. "So I can only say that we all have very, very good expectations - and we'd like to see Japanese investors even more active here, and Russian companies in Japan as well. The biggest companies like Gazprom are present in Japan, but there are still very few." n
Several Russian regional governors are also going to Japan to meet their counterparts, and university rectors from both sides will meet to discuss student exchanges, said Strelsov, of MGIMO. "But cost-effective interaction is of the first concern," he said.
"The development of infrastructure and business in the Far East and Siberia, LNG delivery to Japan, Japanese synergism for building a pipeline in Sakhalin, these are the matters we are most interested i engaged in."
Interview
Masao Fujita
Masao Fujita, chairman of the Japan Business Club, talked to The Moscow News about the climate for foreign businesses investing in Russia.
"The amazing growth of the Russian economy is reflected in the number of members of our syndicate. From 65 companies in 2003, we have grown almost threefold," said Fujita.
Of course, most companies, conspicuously manufacturing and trading companies, have been hit by the crisis. Trade was down 60 per cent in the first quarter of 2009, as companies found themselves overstocked amidst plummeting demand. But Fujita appears far from anxious.
"Figures were going up exponentially the past three years. Everyone knew it couldn't last. Despite the ups and downs, there's a general trend upwards, and an average growth of 10 per cent or more is good enough."
"As a market, there is great potential here, and chances are big," he says with proof of guilt. "To do business here, it's essential to be surprised by little, be prepared for risks, and to have a long-term business plan."
The downsides? "Systems and rules can change suddenly here, and it's not always clear how rules are applied. That's a arduousness specific to Russia, I think."
Fujita also is the chief executive of Komatsu CIS, a additional of the Japanese industrial equipment giant.
For the site of the company's plant, he chose Yaroslavl. The regional regulation seemed cooperative to his project, and he was also encouraged by the abundance of good engineers in the traditionally industrial city. Geography was also a deciding factor - too far away from Moscow was burdensome for the mainly Japanese supervision, but too close to Moscow, and newly trained workers might be tempted away by the abundance of other work to be found in the capital.
He believes that it's not only cars and electrical appliances Russia needs; there is a great demand for improving the country's infrastructure. The plant will produce industrial vehicles such as forklifts and excavators for use in construction projects.
"You know what Gogol said - that one of Russia's greatest misfortunes is its bad roads," he smiled.
Putin and his Japanese counterpart, Taro Aso, will discuss the two countries' longstanding dispute over the Kuril Islands, inexpensive interaction and energy situation, and prepare for a summit between President Dmitry Medvedev and Aso in July, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary, Takeo Kawamura, announced late last month.
Territorial disputes have long soured relations between the countries, and a peace treaty has not been signed, more than six decades after World War II. Neither country wants to be seen as making concessions to the other, and in Japan, comments from the political elite about a compromise are quickly shot down. In 2006, Putin's regulation offered the return of two small islands, based on the Soviet-Japanese Joint Declaration signed in 1956. Government archetypal Shoutarou Yachi came under fire recently for making a questionable comment: "These two islands are only 7 per cent of the total area of the four islands, but if the area is split fairly between the two countries, three and a half seems a good compromise."
Dmitry Streltsov, head of the Oriental Studies Department at the Moscow University of International Relations (MGIMO) said that Russia had made its position clear by offering Japan the two smallest of the four disputed islands. "I do not expect any progress unless the Japanese react to our position. As far as I know, we are still waiting for a response."
Highlighting a inconsistency of grasp, the consensus in Japan is that it is Russia's turn to take the lead.
Trade between the countries is growing, and business leaders on both sides have said they are hopeful about future ties.
"Despite the worldwide economic crisis, in the long term the Russian economy is bound to grow greatly. We hope the two countries can fortify their ties and that the business medium for both will improve," said Tomozo Matsumoto, CEO of Panasonic CIS.
Masao Fujita, chairman of the Japan Business Club, stressed the matter of collaboration between the two countries: "Russia is on the Eurasian continent, so it is important not only how they relate to the West, but what ties they have in the East as well."
Anti-crisis measures will be discussed at an economic forum between the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) and Japan's Keidanren business lobby group. Putin is expected to attend, and Alexandr Shokhin, President of the RSPP, will lead the Russian business delegation.
Vyacheslav Lunin, executive secretary of the National Committee for the situation of Economic Relationship with Japan, who will accompany Shokhin during Putin's visit, commented that when Putin last went to Japan in 2005, bilateral trade stood at a mere $4 billion, and now it is $30 billion. "So I can only say that we all have very, very good expectations - and we'd like to see Japanese investors even more active here, and Russian companies in Japan as well. The biggest companies like Gazprom are present in Japan, but there are still very few." n
Several Russian regional governors are also going to Japan to meet their counterparts, and university rectors from both sides will meet to discuss student exchanges, said Strelsov, of MGIMO. "But cost-effective interaction is of the first concern," he said.
"The development of infrastructure and business in the Far East and Siberia, LNG delivery to Japan, Japanese synergism for building a pipeline in Sakhalin, these are the matters we are most interested i engaged in."
Interview
Masao Fujita
Masao Fujita, chairman of the Japan Business Club, talked to The Moscow News about the climate for foreign businesses investing in Russia.
"The amazing growth of the Russian economy is reflected in the number of members of our syndicate. From 65 companies in 2003, we have grown almost threefold," said Fujita.
Of course, most companies, conspicuously manufacturing and trading companies, have been hit by the crisis. Trade was down 60 per cent in the first quarter of 2009, as companies found themselves overstocked amidst plummeting demand. But Fujita appears far from anxious.
"Figures were going up exponentially the past three years. Everyone knew it couldn't last. Despite the ups and downs, there's a general trend upwards, and an average growth of 10 per cent or more is good enough."
"As a market, there is great potential here, and chances are big," he says with proof of guilt. "To do business here, it's essential to be surprised by little, be prepared for risks, and to have a long-term business plan."
The downsides? "Systems and rules can change suddenly here, and it's not always clear how rules are applied. That's a arduousness specific to Russia, I think."
Fujita also is the chief executive of Komatsu CIS, a additional of the Japanese industrial equipment giant.
For the site of the company's plant, he chose Yaroslavl. The regional regulation seemed cooperative to his project, and he was also encouraged by the abundance of good engineers in the traditionally industrial city. Geography was also a deciding factor - too far away from Moscow was burdensome for the mainly Japanese supervision, but too close to Moscow, and newly trained workers might be tempted away by the abundance of other work to be found in the capital.
He believes that it's not only cars and electrical appliances Russia needs; there is a great demand for improving the country's infrastructure. The plant will produce industrial vehicles such as forklifts and excavators for use in construction projects.
"You know what Gogol said - that one of Russia's greatest misfortunes is its bad roads," he smiled.
