茂木氏、漁船の早期帰港を要求　共同経済活動、１月作業部会―日ロ外相会談

　【モスクワ時事】茂木敏充外相は１９日、ロシアのラブロフ外相とモスクワで会談した。茂木氏は日本漁船がロシア当局に連行されたことを受け、抗議した上で、人道的観点から乗組員の速やかな帰港を求めた。北方四島での共同経済活動に関しては、両外相は来年１月中に局長級の作業部会を開催することで一致した。
　両外相は会談後、共同記者発表に臨んだ。漁船連行に関し、ラブロフ氏は「日本政府から漁民が既存の規則、法律に違反しないように必要な指導をしてもらうように求めた」と明らかにした。今後の対応については言及しなかった。（2019/12/20-01:06）

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on Thursday urged Russia to immediately return crew members of Japanese fishing boats detained by Russian authorities from a humanitarian perspective.
   Motegi also protested the seizure of the ships in a meeting in Moscow with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
   The two agreed to hold in January 2020 a bureau chief-level working group meeting on joint economic activities on the four Russian-held northwestern Pacific islands at the center of the two countries' territorial dispute.
   In a joint press conference after their meeting, Lavrov said he requested that the Japanese government instruct fishing crew members so that they will not break any existing rules or laws. Lavrov did not say how Russia will handle the matter.
   The ministers agreed to hold their next meeting on the sidelines of an international conference in Munich in February. They also confirmed that arrangements for a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin will be continued through diplomatic channels.