Putin says Japan-claimed islands' ownership subject to future talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday the sovereignty of two islands that would be transferred to Japan on the conclusion of a peace treaty is subject to future negotiations.A day after holding talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Singapore, Putin noted that a 1956 joint declaration, which will serve as the basis for the forthcoming talks, does not specify the islands' sovereignty.The declaration "does not say on what grounds and whose sovereignty they will fall under," Putin was quoted as saying in Singapore by Russia's Interfax news agency. "This is the issue to be sc…READ FULL ARTICLE