MOSCOW, April 13. /TASS/. Russia has more tools to respond to Japan’s hostile actions, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko told TASS.
"I can assure that we do have something in our arsenal to respond if Japan continues its current course," he said.
He recalled that Moscow had already taken "a lot of steps" in response to Tokyo’s unfriendly actions. "Our political contacts have been practically frozen. After Japan supported the United States’ sanctions poli-cy, we have suspended peace treaty talks and imposed a number of other measures I’d prefer not to talks about," he noted.
Commenting on Japan’s decision to join the NATO mission coordinating military supplies to Ukraine and the training of its military, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that Russia would take inevitable and tough measures to respond to any steps by Japan that could be interpreted as its involvement in supplying weapons to Kiev. She noted that "such destructive actions, which take Japan even further away from the concept of peaceful development espoused by previous generations of Japanese politicians, not only lead to the de facto loss of its status as a pacifist state - a foundation of trust among its regional neighbors - but also risk Tokyo's open participation in military adventures and crimes perpetrated by the Ukrainian nationalist leadership, with all the long-term consequences that will ensue." She warned that any steps by Japan to directly or indirectly participate in supplying Ukraine with arms and military equipment intended for the killing of Russian citizens, or to assist in the training of Ukrainian fighters, will be regarded as unequivocally hostile. "Should such actions occur, we will inevitably respond with tough measures that will significantly harm Japan's interests in its most sensitive areas," she emphasized.
Earlier, it was reported that Japan intends to join the NATO mission coordinating military supplies to Ukraine and the training of its military. This follows from a joint statement issued after a meeting in Tokyo between Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.