August 21, 2010 9:05 PM

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Japan agrees to intensify discussion to reach pact with India on civil nuclear cooperation

Japan has agreed to intensify discussions with India to conclude an agreement on Civil Nuclear Cooperation soon. The breakthrough came in the 4th round of India Japan Dialogue between External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and his Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada in New Delhi today. The first round of talks was held in June.Addressing a joint press conference after the talks, Japanese Foreign Minister lauded the role of India for its contribution towards nuclear non-proliferation. Responding to queries, he admitted that it was probably one of the toughest decisions he had to take as a foreign minister of the only country that had borne the brunt of the nuclear bombs attack during Second World War. Okadam however, told reporters, if New Delhi were to test a nuclear device, Japan will have no choice but to suspend nuclear cooperation. He added that atomic cooperation with India will not run counter to the goal of creating a nuclear free world. The Japanese Foreign Minister expressed hope that a comprehensive economic partnership agreement will be signed during the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh visit to Tokyo in October this year. Supporting his remarks S M Krishna said that the two countries agreed to work jointly towards a good agreement for peaceful use of Nuclear energy. The External Affairs Minster said, the focus of the talks was also on UN reforms and the two countries decided to approach the African countries to seek their cooperation. Mr. Krishna said, he thanked the Japanese government for removing eleven Indian companies from the end user lists. This, he said, will give a boost to high technology trade between the two countries.

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