MOSCOW -- Japan and Russia have launched negotiations for a peace treaty to officially end World War II, but formidable obstacles stand in the way of an agreement.
Achieving a resolution on a set of long-disputed islands will be crucial to whether Japan and Russia can reach an accord, but they differ on a wide range of other issues. Gaps in their understanding of history during and after the war, their interpretation of the 1956 Japanese-Soviet Joint Declaration and their views on the Japan-U.S. security treaty are all stumbling blocks in the talks.
