Japan, India To Resume Civil Nuclear Cooperation Talks; New Dialogues On Maritime And Cyber Security To Be Launched

Japan and India Monday decided to launch two separate dialogues in maritime and cyber security domains and also to resume negotiations on civil nuclear cooperation.

Indian external affairs minister S M Krishna and Japanese foreign minister Koichiro Gemba held a strategic economic dialogue on a wide range of issues, including energy and trade ties and nuclear and strategic cooperation between the countries.

In a statement issued after the first India-Japan Ministerial-level Economic Dialogue, the Japanese foreign minister said that both the sides had agreed to launch two new dialogue mechanisms between the two Foreign Ministries. The first is a cyber security dialogue; the second a maritime dialogue, both of which will be at the level of officials. They will further deepen our relations.

We look forward to the first naval exercise later this year between the Indian Navy and the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force, he added.

The meeting decided to resume the negotiations on civil nuclear cooperation which had hit roadblocks after the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Other areas of focus included technology sharing and cooperation in road and high-speed railway infrastructure in India, the statement said.

Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yukio Edano and several other senior ministers and officials from both India and Japan participated in the economic dialogue.

Deputy chairman of the Planning Commission of India Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Edano held the India-Japan Energy Dialogue Monday morning.

A joint declaration by both countries said that they had decided to intensify cooperation in energy efficiency and conservation sector. The meeting focused on boosting cooperation in renewable energy, clean coal technologies and enhancing technology exchange in energy and related sectors.

Japan has cordial and thriving economic and commercial ties with India, and Japanese companies are investing millions of dollars in various projects across India.

Bilateral trade between the countries is currently around $15 billion and both sides have set a target of $25 billion by 2014, according to an IANS report.