Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:-

(a)  the topics on which talks were held between Governments of India and Japan recently when the Minister visited Tokyo;

(b) the details of the decisions arrived at; and

(c) the action taken/proposed to be taken by the two Governments to implement them?

ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
(SHRI PRANAB MUKHERJEE)

(a) to (c) The External Affairs Minister visited Japan on 22-23 March 2007 at the invitation of the Foreign Minister of Japan. The two Ministers initiated the first Ministerial-level Strategic Dialogue between the two countries. They exchanged views on ways to enhance cooperation on regional, multilateral and global issues, and reiterated their readiness to cooperate in the process of community building in the Asian region. Both sides also discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations through the implementation of understandings and agreements contained in the Joint Statement signed by the two Prime Ministers in December 2006. During the visit, the two sides agreed on the modalities for the High Level Energy Dialogue and the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on High Technology Trade. Government are regularly monitoring progress on the implementation of understandings reached with Japan in the fields of Defense and security, economic cooperation, science & technology & people-to-people exchanges.