Russia's Putin says Western sanctions an obstacle to talks with Japan - media

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting about state funding for science at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia November 23, 2016. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS

TOKYO (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Western sanctions imposed after Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea are an obstacle to talks on a peace treaty with Japan, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Tuesday.

A feud over four islands seized by Moscow at the end of World War Two but claimed by Japan has kept Tokyo and Moscow from formally signing a peace treaty ending the conflict.