India, Japan looking to expand footprint in African nations
NEWDELHI: India and Japan are in talks to start joint ventures of companies in African countries at a time when the Chinese are expanding the footprint in various sectors in countries across the same continent.
In an exclusive interview to Hindustan Times, Japanese ambassador to India, Kenji Hiramatsu also said the Japanese parliament has begun discussions on ratifying civil-nuclear cooperation with India.
“The African continent is an area of important cooperation between Japan and India. Now we are in talks to identify special projects and ventures Indian and Japanese companies can come together on,” the envoy said, terming such cooperation as a “win-win situation”.
When asked about the specific areas the countries would focus on, he said “such details may take a while” to arrive at, but many Indian companies have “huge networks” and can leverage the technological advantage of Japanese firms. “It can help in setting up manufacturing units, or industrial parks..”
The ambassador said the Japanese parliament had begun discussions on the ratification of the civil-nuclear cooperation with India. “The discussions have begun in the lower house of parliament (diet). I hope the process is completed soon.”
However, he refused to provide a time frame for its conclusion. Unlike in India, parliamentary ratification is necessary for all international treaties in Japan. The pact, signed when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the country in November last year, is significant for India in more ways than one. It is Japan’s first civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with a country that has not signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Many major nuclear manufacturers source materials for reactors from Japan.
Hiramatsu said the two countries are at an advanced stage to announce connectivity projects in countries such as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
“We have the technology and India has requisite human resources and the two countries can work together for connectivity projects in India’s neighbouring countries.”
The envoy went on to say there is a great deal of synergy between India’s Act Policy and Indo-Pacific thrust in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s foreign policy, pointing out this is yet another area where two countries can work together.
Speaking on the North Korean situation, the ambassador said the situation in the Korean peninsula is disturbing and hoped China would play a role in defusing the tension diplomatically.
We have the technology and India has requisite human resources and the two countries can work together for connectivity projects. KENJI HIRAMATSU, Japanese ambassador to India