Putin tries dog diplomacy before Japan talks over islands
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin tried a bit of dog diplomacy ahead of his trip to Japan, and then gave a glimmer of hope that a 70-year territorial dispute with Tokyo could be resolved.
Japanese journalists met with Putin at the Kremlin, days before Putin heads to Tokyo. The interview began with the Russian leader showing off the Akita given to him by Japan in 2012.
Putin fed the massive dog, called Yume, which was just a puppy when she came to Russia. Now, the canine is almost as big as Putin when she stands up on her hind legs to receive a treat from her master. The journalists appeared intimidated by the beast and told Putin afterward that they had been “scared.”
Putin then said that there was a “chance” to settle a dispute over the Kuril islands, a chain of volcanic islands that run between Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula and Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. Moscow and Tokyo have never formally signed a treaty ending World War II because of a dispute over their ownership.