Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov agreed Tuesday to realize Russian President Vladimir Putin's promised visit to Japan within this year.

But the foreign ministers failed to immediately specify the date for Putin's visit and they remained far apart over a long- standing territorial dispute.

"We confirmed that the visit by President Putin will definitely be realized within this year," Machimura said in a joint press conference with Lavrov.

Machimura said the Japanese and Russian governments will " shortly" reach an agreement on a date for Putin's first trip to Japan since 2000.

Lavrov was pessimistic about an early settlement of the disputed islands off north Japan's Hokkaido. "It is true that we haven't found ways to sign a peace treaty and determine territory, " Lavrov said. "Our positions are totally opposite."

Machimura and Lavrov said they tried to hammer out a set of draft documents for Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to release during their summit in Japan. Putin last visited Japan in 2000.

The documents being drafted by the foreign ministers in last- ditch preparations for Putin's visit to Japan are expected to feature various agreements on political issues, a senior official of the Japanese Foreign Ministry said earlier.

On the economic front, Japan and Russia broadly ironed out differences over pending issues when Machimura met with Russian Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko last month in Tokyo.

Specifically, they agreed to accelerate talks on the route of a planned Pacific-bound oil pipeline originating in eastern Siberia and vowed to work closely in order to boost mutual trade and investment.

Machimura also said he and Lavrov discussed international issues including UN reforms, Korea Peninsula's nuclear issue and fisheries.

Japan and Russia have long been at odds over the sovereignty of disputed islands off Hokkaido, which Japan calls the Northern Territories and Russia calls the Southern Kurils.

Source: Xinhua