Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will travel to Russia to attend a ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of the Allied victory in World War II, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said Thursday.

Arrangements are also made for Koizumi to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and, possibly, with leaders of China and South Korea in trilateral talks, Hosoda told a press conference.

Koizumi is scheduled to leave Tokyo for Moscow on May 8 to take part in the May 9 event before returning on May 10, the top government spokesman said.

The Japanese prime minister made the decision to attend the ceremony as part of support for "the resolve of the international community to counter global threats such as international terrorism and other challenges of the 21st century," Hosoda said.

Leaders from about 50 countries are expected to sit in on the celebrations of what Moscow calls the 60th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, which was ended in Europe in May 1945.

Tokyo feels it is important for Koizumi to join in as one of the responsible leaders of the international community, Hosoda said.

According to Kyodo news agency, Koizumi had initially indicated that he was noncommittal to the invitation from Moscow, because of a protracted territorial dispute that had previously ruined a planned visit by Putin to Japan.

Source: Xinhua