Russia says relations with Japan 'reduced to zero'

The Kremlin said on Friday that relations with Japan had been reduced to zero over Tokyo's "unfriendly" stance toward Russia and that there ​is no ongoing dialogue toward peace.

Russia and Japan never signed a formal World War II peace treaty, mainly due to an unresolved territorial dispute.

In an inaugural address to parliament on Friday, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said, "Although Japan-Russia relations are in a tough spot, the Japanese ​government's position remains unchanged, aiming to ​resolve the territorial issue and conclude ​a ‌peace treaty," according to Russia's TASS state news agency.

However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia's relations with Japan "have ‌been reduced to zero" over what he cast as Tokyo's "unfriendly stance" toward Moscow.

"There is no dialogue, and it is impossible ​to ​discuss the issue of a peace ​treaty without dialogue," he told reporters at a daily briefing. "Russia has never been in favor of ending this dialogue."

"Under these circumstances, it is unlikely ​that any agreements can be reached without changing the modalities of our relations," he said.

(With input from Reuters)