“There was a feeling that we were approaching negotiations, the content of which would have been aimed at concluding (an agreement - RT),” RIA Novosti quoted Abe as saying in an interview with the Nikkei newspaper.
According to him, in this case, it was necessary to dissolve both chambers of parliament in order to find out "the will of the people."
He noted that during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Singapore in November 2018, the parties were closest to concluding a peace treaty.
Earlier, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, who retained his post in the new government, confirmed Tokyo's desire to sign a peace treaty with Russia.