The Hindu Business Line : PM seeks political help for an economic push

Areas of tie-up
The knowledge economy is one sector where there is scope to build partnership.
Synergies in the development of Indian software and Japanese hardware should be exploited.

Dr Manmohan Singh

Tokyo , Dec. 14

He had come to Tokyo in 1992 as India's Finance Minister to express gratitude for Japan's help in dealing with the unprecedented economic crises of 1991.

This afternoon, Dr Manmohan Singh addressed a joint sitting of the Diet, Japan's Parliament, with élan as the Prime Minister of what he said was a new India.

Economic ties

Using the opportunity to speak to the width of Japan's political leadership, Dr Singh called for a strong push to economic ties between the two countries.

"Our trade and investment ties are well below potential," he pleaded. "This must change."

Dr Singh drew attention to the state of India's booming trade with both China and Korea that grew at around 40 per cent each last year. The China trade was three times that with Japan, and the trade with Korea was almost equal to that with Japan, he said.

To exploit the full potential of the economic cooperation with Japan, he said that strong efforts were needed from the two governments, trade and industry. The knowledge economy was one sector where he saw the scope to build a partnership. "We must exploit the synergies in the development of Indian software and Japanese hardware," he said.

Nuclear energy foray

Dr Singh gently attempted to win Japan's support for India's nuclear energy foray by talking of energy security being of mutual interest. India saw nuclear power as a viable and clean energy source. But he hastened to assure his Japanese hosts that India's commitment to universal nuclear disarmament was unshakeable.

As he invited Japanese companies to expand their presence in India, he said that his Government was determined to provide an investment friendly economic environment. He and Japan's Prime Minister, Mr Shinzo Abe, would launch negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.

The two Prime Ministers are to meet formally on Friday to work on the modalities.

In the evening, they separately met members of a business delegation that has come from India.

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