A ww2 era political comic depicting Russia and Japan at war.

The gulf between Japan and Russia is widening

Jason BallByJason Ball

Russia and Japan are still bitter rivals, despite a friendly welcome for President Putin in Osaka for the latest G20 meeting.

The nations went to war twice last century and Russia’s recently been conducting missile tests close to Japan’s northern border.

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo Abe says he wants a peace deal with Russia.

But in this week’s Japan Story blog, we hear that President Putin takes a very different view of politics to that of the mainstream establishment in Japan.

A ww2 era political comic depicting Russia and Japan at war.

Japan Story’s blog is written by former BBC Tokyo Correspondent Duncan Bartlett. Each week he analyses how Japan’s story is being told to the world through the international media.