Japan and India To Promote Talks On Nuclear Pact

Japan and India agreed Saturday to advance talks on a civilian nuclear cooperation pact. The bilateral negotiations with India towards concluding the accord on the transfer of nuclear energy technology have been stalled since the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba told a joint news conference with his Indian counterpart SM Krishna that he wanted to include a clause in the proposed accord to say cooperation would be suspended if India conducted nuclear testing, the Kyodo news agency reported. "We hope for understanding on Japan's efforts toward nuclear disarmament as the only country to have suffered atomic bombing," Gemba said. The two Foreign Ministers also agreed to enhance cooperation in the production of rare earth elements, which are needed for electronics and hybrid vehicles. In October 2010, then-premier Naoto Kan and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reached an agreement on the joint development of rare earth deposits in the South Asian country.