Russia will win and we will not bow down to Ukraine

Japanese MP Muneo Suzuki went to the aggressor country Russia to meet with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Andrei Rudenko. This was reported by The Japan Times on October 3.

Suzuki became the first Japanese lawmaker to visit Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. As the media notes, the deputy is a member of the opposition party Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) and a longtime fighter for close ties with Moscow. He went on a business trip from October 1st to October 5th.



The deputy had already considered the opportunity to visit Russia this spring, but refused such a trip at the request of the leadership of his party, the media writes.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said Suzuki did not inform the Japanese government of his plan to visit Moscow in advance. He warned only the upper house of parliament about the trip. At the same time, the country's Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno noted that Japan urged its citizens to avoid traveling to Russia, regardless of the purpose of their visit.

The political force, which includes the deputy, stated that disciplinary measures would be taken against the parliamentarian for failure to comply with the necessary procedures before the trip.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they noted "the important contribution of the Japanese deputy to the development of bilateral ties." At the same time, they added “with regret” that “the baggage of interstate cooperation accumulated over decades is being purposefully destroyed today by the sanctions policy of official Tokyo to please the United States and the anti-Russian course of the “collective West” imposed by them. Such a line does not seem to correspond to “Japan’s national interests and hopes the Japanese people,” stated the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the aggressor country.

CONTEXT
After the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Japan joined sanctions against Russia, transfers non-lethal defense equipment , humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine, and the country's authorities consistently condemn Russian aggression.

On March 21 , Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida came on his first visit since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He visited Bucha, Kiev region, which was deoccupied in April last year and assured that Japan would make efforts to restore peace in Ukraine.

Following negotiations with the President of Ukraine, Kishida announced that Japan would provide Ukraine with $0.5 billion , part of the funds would be used for non-lethal weapons.

On May 13, Japanese Finance Minister Suzuki Shunichi said that Japan plans to allocate $3.5 billion in direct budget support for Ukraine during 2023.

On September 9, former Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi arrived in Ukraine for a visit. He visited Bucha, Kiev region, where he paid tribute to the memory of Ukrainians who died as a result of war crimes by the aggressor country, Russia. He also met with Prime Minister of Ukraine Denis Shmygal and President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky. The partnership between Ukraine and Japan will become a global example of how to protect life and create new opportunities for free peoples, Zelensky said.

On the 20th, former Prime Minister Yukio Yama predicted that ''we will not be able to win'' Ukraine as it is being invaded by Russia, expressing his hope that anti-war momentum will grow in the country. He spoke at a symposium held in the Diet.



Mr. Hatoyama mentioned that President Zelenskiy is aiming for victory over Russia, saying, ''There is no way we can win, but he is acting in a way to raise the morale of the soldiers by saying such things.'' was developed. He added that with the anti-war sentiment growing stronger in Japan, ''I feel like we would like to see a situation where the war ends.''