FILE PHOTO: Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a Northern Territories Day rally to call on Russia to return a group of islands, known as the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kuriles in Russia, in Tokyo, Japan February 7, 2017. REUTERS/Issei Kato
MOSCOW (Reuters) - A crowd gathered in Moscow on Sunday to defend Russia's ownership of a chain of islands captured by Soviet troops from Japan during the final days of World War Two.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, is pushing for a treaty for the islands, known as the Southern Kuriles in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan. Russia said on Monday that its sovereignty over them was not up for discussion.
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