Tokyo, Feb 23 (IANS): The Japanese Foreign Ministry has denied a G7 foreign ministers' joint statement condemning Russia issued by the US State Department, local media reported.
Japan did not issue such a statement and the Ministry has communicated the apparent error to the US State Department, said the Ministry on Wednesday.
According to the Ministry, the US State Department mistakenly sent a G7 foreign ministers' statement, presumably from October 2022, to the press.
Multiple local media, including Kyodo News, retracted articles based on the erroneous statement on Wednesday evening, Xinhua news agency reported.
Japan is the rotating chair of G7 this year and the G7 summit will be held in Hiroshima in May.