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| Sunday, 1 May 2005 |
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Japan's PM pushes strategic and trade ties with India NEW DELHI, Saturday (AFP) Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi agreed with his Indian counterpart Friday to work for a closer strategic and trade partnership following moves by the world's biggest democracy to build closer ties with China. Koizumi, who arrived in New Delhi late Thursday, signed a joint statement with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh committing the two countries to a "high level strategic dialogue." The dialogue would seek to boost economic, security, energy and other cooperation, said the statement, which also reaffirmed the two country's support for each other's bids for permanent UN Security Council seats. Analysts said Tokyo was keen to build stronger links with New Delhi in light of China's growing friendship with India. India saw Japan as a crucial support to its UN bid due to Koizumi's close ties with US President George W. Bush but would be careful not to jeopardize warming ties with Beijing, they said. Koizumi and Singh agreed to "further deepen the Japan-India global partnership" as Asia's clout, particularly in economic areas, expands. "A strong, prosperous and dynamic India is... in the interests of Japan and vice versa," a joint statement signed by the two leaders said. Koizumi's effort to woo New Delhi coincides with a warming in relations between New Delhi and Beijing - and a cooling between China and Japan. The two sides agreed to aim for a "quantum increase of trade volume." Bilateral trade is now at about 4.4 billion dollars and India's Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said it should be able to hit 10 billion dollars in three years. "As partners in the new Asian era... and as nations sharing common values and principles, (Japan and India) will expand their traditional bilateral cooperation to cooperation in Asia and beyond," the statement said. Koizumi's trip to New Delhi came just two weeks after a visit by Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao that put Sino-Indian relations firmly on the path of reconciliation after their brief, bitter border war more than four decades ago. "I want to strongly emphasize that India has Japan as a friend in Asia," Koizumi told a business audience. |
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