Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Friday he intended to visit Moscow to attend a ceremony on May 9 for the 60th anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

"I'm considering attending the ceremony," Kyodo News quoted Koizumi as saying at his office. He said that each country had its own war experiences, but the ceremony was aimed at demonstrating that enemies had become friends.

The prime minister suggested earlier that he would not go, citing official duties.

Moscow invited Koizumi to the commemorative event, but Tokyo was noncommittal amid the difficulty of arranging a visit to Japan early this year by Russian President Vladimir Putin over a persistent territorial row.

The two countries agreed on Wednesday on a rescheduled visit by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to Japan in late May to lay the groundwork for Putin's visit later this year.

On bilateral relations, Koizumi said, "I would like to take the Japan-Russia relations in a direction where we can increase exchanges and foster a relationship of trust in order to solve the Northern Territory issue and conclude a peace treaty."

Source: Xinhua