India, Japan to expedite work on infra projects and agree to enhance currency swap arrangement to USD 15 billion

New Delhi, Dec 29 (PTI) Allaying apprehensions over the fate of the nuclear cooperation in the wake of the Fukushima accident, Japan has expressed keenness in expanding ties with India to the sector after taking into consideration the safety aspects. Seeking to expand cooperation in the 60th year of establishing diplomatic ties, India and Japan also decided to expedite work on infrastructure projects and agreed to enhance the currency swap arrangement from USD 3 billion to USD 15 billion. This was finalised during the annual India-Japan summit talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his visiting Japanese counterpart Yoshihiko Noda in New Delhi on Wednesday. "We shall proceed with the negotiations on the (civil nuclear) agreement after giving due consideration to nuclear safety, nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation," Noda said at a joint press conference with Singh after the talks. He said Japan attached importance to the voluntary commitments and actions India has expressed with regarding to testing of nuclear devices. At the same time, Noda said it was Japan's duty to share the experiences and the lessons learnt from the nuclear power accident at Fukushima and continue to contribute to nuclear safety around the world. Noda's comments assume significance as there have been questions on the fate of the proposed deal, which is under negotiation, after the radiation scare in Fukushima when Tsunami hit the nuclear plant there on March 11. Noting that FDI from Japan account for just over one per cent of its total outward FDI flows, Singh said "we would like to see much more Japanese investment and technology transfer in India, which we will facilitate." Noda said cooperation with India regarding peaceful uses of nuclear energy was conducive to Japan's efforts to address climate change and to strengthen the global partnership with India. Singh and Noda agreed to expand cooperation in maritime security including safety and freedom of navigation and anti-piracy activities, by promoting bilateral and multilateral exercises, and through information sharing, as well as dialogues. They also welcomed the joint exercise between the Indian Coast Guard and the Japan Coast Guard to be held in January 2012, a joint statement issued after the talks said. The two leaders resolved to develop greater cooperation in combating terrorism through sharing information and utilising the India-Japan Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism, as well as multilateral fora such as the Financial Action Task Force and the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum. Reaffirming the importance of counter-terrorism cooperation at the UN, they recognised the urgent need to finalise and adopt the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism and called upon all States to cooperate in resolving the outstanding issues expeditiously. In a significant move to ensure stability of financial markets, Singh and Noda decided to enhance the earlier bilateral currency swap arrangement from three billion dollars to 15 billion dollars. They expressed hope that this will further strengthen financial cooperation, contribute to ensuring financial market stability and further develop growing economic and trade ties between the two countries, the joint statement said. Singh also welcomed the interest shown by Japan in sharing high speed rail technology for passenger networks in India. PTI