Japan favours India’s nuclear programme

NEW DELHI: A day before the India-Japan annual summit, Japan supported India’s civilian nuclear programme, but hoped that India would sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is scheduled to hold discussions with his Japanese counterpart Yukio Hatoyama on Tuesday where nuclear disarmament and climate change, along with cooperation in the civilian nuclear sector, are up for discussion. On Monday, Mr Hatoyama met with business representatives and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in Mumbai. Mr Singh also hosted a dinner for Mr Hatoyama.

Elaborating on the importance of India for Japan, Kazuo Kodama, press secretary at the Japanese ministry of foreign affairs, said Japan hoped India would sign the CTBT and also see the beginning of negotiations on the Fissile Material Cut off Treaty.

“The issue of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation issues will also be discussed (between the two prime ministers). The prime minister welcomes India’s unilateral moratorium on testing. At the same time, the Japanese government hopes India will sign and ratify the CTBT,” Mr Kodama said. He further indicated that civilian nuclear cooperation would be part of the discussions between the two prime ministers, especially in the context of climate change. The Japanese government’s position on the issue becomes important as General Electric and Westinghouse Electric Company (WEC) — the two companies that are seeking to build nuclear reactors — are partly owned by Japanese companies.

India and Japan have been exchanging notes on their respective nuclear energy policies. “We would be happy to take the process forward at a pace and in a manner convenient to Japan,” ministry of external affairs spokesperson Vishnu Prakash had said in response to a question on the possibility of signing an agreement in the area.