The remarks were particularly painful for Korean residents, hundreds, if not thousands, of whom were attacked and killed by Japanese mobs because of unfounded rumours about riots after the Great Kanto Earthquake hit Tokyo in 1923. Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, who has seen his popularity plummet after making remarks that rekindled Japanese militarism, went to a disaster command bunker in the SDF headquarters for the first part of the drill to test its communications facilities. The drills were held in 10 locations in the capital. One women who saw the drills in Ginza was impressed and frightened by the show of military force. They did this exercise during Putin's visit.
Negotiations are under way.
The two sides agreed at a summit three years ago to forge a peace treaty by the end of 2000, but the sovereignty dispute has meant progress has been glacial. Japan has already abandoned the treaty deadline in private, Japanese reports say. Putin and Mori called for better bilateral relations in their airport statements but there were no direct references to the island issue. The declaration of 1998 referred to an agreement that a proposed peace treaty would solve the territorial question and contain principles of friendship and cooperation between the two countries. But Moscow has later called for the signing of a peace treaty by leaving the territorial dispute for future negotiations, a proposal firmly rejected by Tokyo.