India, Japan agree to continue negotiations on civil nuclear pact

"We do not intend fixing a time-line for the conclusion of such an agreement," External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, who co-chaired the 4th round of the India-Japan Strategic Dialogue with his Japanese counterpart Katsuya Okada here today, told mediapersons.

"I conveyed to Foreign Minister Okada our appreciation of Japan’s decision to commence negotiations on a bilateral Agreement on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy. As you are aware, the first round of negotiations was held in Tokyo on June 28-29 this year," he said.

Mr Krishna said he and Mr Okada had a productive exchange of ideas on how to further strengthen the many dimensions of the India-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership.

He said they discussed ways of further consolidating the excellent political, economic, security and people-to-people relations that India and Japan enjoy.

"We affirmed the fundamental and inherent strength of India-Japan relations, which is demonstrated in the continuing logic of our Partnership which has withstood changes in Government in both our countries. We agreed on the pivotal role of economic cooperation in steering our ties forward. We recognized that both sides have a mutual stake in each other’s prosperity and progress," Mr Krishna said.

He thanked Japan for its continuing Official Development Assistance to India as well as its assistance to flagship infrastructure projects like the Dedicated Freight Corridor, the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor and the establishment of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad. Mr Okada reiterated Japan’s commitment towards these projects.

Mr Krishna also thanked the Government of Japan for removing 11 Indian entities from its End User List. The decision will provide a big boost to High Technology Trade between India and Japan.

According to him, the two sides exchanged views on the evolving regional architecture in Asia and agreed to work together in ensuring that such an architecture is open and inclusive. As member-nations of the East Asia Summit (EAS), they welcomed the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' decision to move towards the inclusion of the United States and Russia in the EAS.

They also agreed to continue and enhance their consultations within the G-4 process for reform of the United Nations including its Security Council.

Mr Krishna said he had accepted Mr Okada’s invitation to meet with other G-4 Foreign Ministers in New York in September this year on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Session.

The two sides discussed regional issues of interest to both countries. They agreed to enhance dialogue between their Foreign Offices on several regions. The two countries decided to embark on a new Dialogue on Africa, with a view to synergizing their developmental efforts in that continent.

Mr Krishna said he and Mr Okada discussed global issues like climate change, non-proliferation and disarmament.

"I conveyed our willingness to Foreign Minister Okada to work with Japan to ensure a balanced, comprehensive, equitable and effective outcome in the UN-led process on climate change at COP-16 in Mexico. On disarmament issues, I conveyed that India and Japan share the goal of a nuclear weapon-free world. We are ready to work with Japan to achieve such an objective in a comprehensive, non-discriminatory and verifiable framework," he said.

Japan has been facing internal opposition to the proposed agreement on civil nuclear energy with India, given its sensitivities on nuclear issues as the only country which has actually been a victim of nuclear bomb attacks. In this context, Japan has been urging India to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).

NNN