Japan hit Russia with further sanctions on Wednesday over the crisis in Ukraine, in a further blow to efforts to end a longstanding territorial row between the pair. The fresh penalties, targeting exports of military equipment and technology to Russia, come a day after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reportedly dropped plans to host President Vladimir Putin later this year due to tensions over the conflict.
Effective from Wednesday, the new sanctions oblige the Japanese government to strictly enforce curbs on exports of weapons and other military equipment to Russia, as well as restricting the provision of arms technology, a government statement said. Japan will also ban five Russian banks from issuing securities in Japan, the statement added.
The move follows two earlier sets of sanctions imposed by Japan in March and August. Putin was planning to visit Japan "this autumn" but Tokyo has postponed the trip until next year following a request from key ally Washington, Kyodo News reported on Tuesday, citing Japanese government sources.
The fresh sanctions are in line with those issued by other Group of Seven countries - the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada - ahead of a meeting of their foreign ministers in New York on Thursday to discuss a crisis that has sparked the worst stand-off between Russia and the West since the Cold War.
Abe has held multiple summits with Putin since coming to office in late 2012, pushing to expand economic ties and resolve a dispute over the ownership of islands that were seized by Soviet troops in the closing days of World War II. But the crisis in Ukraine has thrown a spanner in the works, and Tokyo has fallen in with its allies in Europe and North America, heaping sanctions and pressure on Moscow.
On August 5, Japan unveiled details of financial sanctions against 40 individuals and two groups involved in the annexation of Crimea and destabilisation of eastern Ukraine. The August decision froze the assets of those on the list, as Tokyo joined the West in pressing Moscow to exercise its influence over pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine to achieve a peaceful resolution in the crisis.
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