Japan, India agree on security cooperation, with emphasis on ties+

NEW DELHI, Dec. 29 Kyodo -
Japan and India agreed Tuesday to strengthen bilateral security cooperation,
deciding to hold regular vice ministerial-level dialogues between their foreign
policy and defense officials.

After their talks in New Delhi, visiting Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama
and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh signed a joint statement mapping out
action plans to promote such cooperation.
Under the agreement, the two countries will hold maritime security dialogues to
secure the safe passage of commercial ships in the Indian Ocean, in addition to
holding the so-called two-plus-two talks involving security-related officials,
Japanese officials said.
The action plans will embody the Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation,
signed in October last year by then Prime Minister Taro Aso and Singh, and with
them, Japan is aiming to stress its desire to continue developing ties with
India after Hatoyama's Democratic Party of Japan took over the government in
September.
''We have been able to raise the strategic global partnership (between the two
countries) to a new level,'' Hatoyama said at a news conference, adding that it
was significant that the two countries have set action plans to deepen the
Joint Declaration.
Japanese and Indian leaders have made reciprocal visits to each other's
countries since 2005. Hatoyama requested during the talks that Singh visit
Japan next year, and Singh accepted, according to Japanese officials.
In the talks, the two leaders shared ''common feelings'' for nuclear
disarmament, Hatoyama said. They also expressed support for the early
conclusion of the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty, according to the officials.
Hatoyama said he had told Singh during the talks, ''I want India, along with
the United States and China, to sign (the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty)
soon.''
Singh responded by saying that new conditions would emerge if the United States
and China sign the treaty, Hatoyama said, indicating that India may consider
going along if the United States and China sign the treaty first.
The leaders also confirmed that the two countries will speed up talks on an
economic partnership agreement and aim for the early conclusion of a freight
railway project linking New Delhi and Mumbai.
They also confirmed they will promote the Copenhagen Accord, a new climate deal
that calls for developed countries to set out respective greenhouse gas
emissions cut targets for 2020 and for developing countries to take actions to
mitigate climate change, but without binding power.
''We need an agreement soon that major countries can join,'' Hatoyama said at
the news conference.
Before the talks, Hatoyama and his wife Miyuki laid flowers at a memorial at
Rajghat dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi.
Hatoyama, who began his Indian visit on Sunday, is scheduled to return to Japan
early Wednesday.
==Kyodo
2009-12-29 23:52:44