The signing of the memoranda follows a visit to Japan which Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu made in September, when he held discussions with ministers as well as financial institutions which could potentially invest in India’s rail sector.
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Mr. Modi called the move a “shining symbol of a new level of mutual confidence and strategic partnership in the cause of a peaceful and secure world”.
Modi said India and Japan will shape an Asian century as they realise Vision 2025 of their ties.
Tokyo’s decision to enter into nuke talks with New Delhi sparked off strong reactions from the anti-nuclear activists in Japan, as India did not sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
On the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) issue, he said India had put it behind with Japan’s help in 2008 itself when the nuclear suppliers group decided to make an exception for India. There will be a 15-year moratorium and under the agreement for Shinkansen high speed train there will be transfer of technology and Make in India component in a phased manner. These will make it possible for Japan to sell US-2 amphibious aircraft to India, a deal the two sides have been negotiating for two years.
He added that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe did raise talk about the South China Sea during his conversation with Modi.
Japan is also eyeing an over Rs 60,000 crore project initiated by India to build six more conventional submarines. Modi, who has been looking to Tokyo to pump in capital to overhaul the country’s infrastructure, said “this enterprise will launch a revolution in India’s railways and speed up India’s journey into the future”.
“We have been trying for a very long period of time, especially the nuclear agreement with Japan”.
Without it, “U.S. nuclear energy companies, with their ties to Japanese companies, can not bring their reactors to India’s shores”, a source close to the government said.
The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the intention to develop Japan Industrial Townships (JITs) in India with incentive for companies which invest in the project. The Japanese PM, accompanied by Modi, not only meticulously followed the rituals – Ganga pujan, aachman and sankalp, as described by priests, he also photographed from his personal cellphone the festivities and the Ganga aarti.
Under the two defense pacts signed, the two sides will share technology, equipment and military information. “We hope countries outside the region respect the efforts of regional countries in maintaining peace and stability of South China Sea, instead of doing the opposite”, Hong said, a statement signifying deep disapproval. Jaishankar said though feasibility report of the project is ready, a committee of officials would go into drawing the details of the joint venture.
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Among the global issues, Modi and Abe discussed North Korea’s contentious nuclear programme and expressed concern over that country’s continued development of its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes, including its uranium enrichment activities.
