Japan mulls further sanctions on Russia over Ukraine

TOKYO - The Japanese government is mulling to further impose sanctions against Russia on current turbulence in Ukraine, local media reported Thursday, citing government officials as saying.

The decision was made during a Tuesday's meeting under Japan's National Security Council and is expected to be announced on Friday, according to Japan's Kyodo News, adding, however, that the new sanctions will be "restrictive."

"We plan to make the measures restrictive to some extent," Kyodo quoted a government official as reporting, suggesting that Japan does not want the issue to significantly impact on bilateral talks on their territorial dispute.

Japan and Russia are at odds over a series of islands north off Japan's Hokkaido. The islands, which are known as Southern Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan, keep the two sides from signing a peace treaty since the end of WWII.

Japan, which has joined hands with the United States and some European countries, has already to impose sanctions on Russia, including freezing assets held in Japan by 40 individuals and two groups involved in Russia's move on Crimea and the instability in eastern Ukraine.

The new sanctions are expected to tough restrictions on financial and energy transactions, according to the report.

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