DASD CLAD TALKS INDIA WITH JAPANESE OFFICALS

C O N F I D E N T I A L TOKYO 002668 SIPDIS SIPDIS TO COMUSJAPAN FOR J00 E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/14/2017 TAGS: PGOV JA MARR PGOV PINR SUBJECT: DASD CLAD TALKS INDIA WITH JAPANESE OFFICALS Classified By: AMBASSADOR J. THOMAS SCHIEFFER, REASONS 1.4(B),(D). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY. On June 7, 2007 DASD for South and Southeast Asia James Clad met Ministry of Defense and MOFA officials to discuss Japan's emerging defense and security cooperation with India. Following the recent Japan-India Defense Ministerial as well as U.S./Japan/India naval training exercise in April, Japan aims to develop India as a future strategic partner focusing on defense, commercial and other elements set out in a December 2006 communiqu issued during Indian PM Manmohan Singh's visit to Japan. PM Abe and Defense Minister Kyuma intend to visit New Delhi in the next three months. Japan sees its near-term security relations with India improving via expanding ship and officer exchanges, bilateral discussions on missile defense, and in efforts to accelerate modernization of India's navy. Regarding Delhi's attitude to the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI),Vice Minister for Defense Moriya said India's defense secretary told him during a recent visit that India had now adopted wait-and-see approach. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) On his return from visits to Singapore and Jakarta DASD for South and Southeast Asia James Clad met Ministry of Defense (MOD) and MOFA officials to discuss relations between Japan and India. Those met included Administrative Vice Minister (AVM) for Defense Takemasa Moriya, MOD Director General of the Defense Policy Bureau Kazuya Ofuru, MOFA Deputy Director General for North American Affairs Kazuyoshi Umemoto, and MOD Deputy Director General of the Minister's Secretariat on Security Policy Akira Kamata. DASD Clad also SIPDIS discussed Japan's India strategy with senior JETRO adviser (and former MITI vice minister) Osamu Watanabe and JETRO executive vice president Tomoharu Washio. ¶3. (C) At each meeting, officials described expanded defense and commercial relations with India as overdue. AVM Moriya noted that Prime Minister Abe plans to visit India this summer, probably during the August Diet recess. Defense Minister Kyuma (whom Clad met in Singapore during the 2-3 June Shangri-La Dialogue meetings) also has expressed his intention to visit New Delhi, but more specific itineraries for his or PM Abe's visits are not yet available. Missile Defense -------------- ¶4. (C) DASD Clad noted that Japan has a mature missile defense relationship with the U.S. and can serve as an appropriate mentor to India. MOD officials Moriya and Ofuru agreed that Japan's experience and insights in this field could be useful to the Indian leadership. DG Ofuru and DDG Umemoto said both MOFA and MOD are currently looking to ways to deepen senior level communication with the Indians at the ministerial level, in order to "compare notes on ballistic missile defense (BMD)." DDG Umemoto noted that the Indians seemed "forthcoming" about a BMD-themed defense ministerial, and Japan has no objection if India prefers such a meeting to be "informal." DASD Clad said that such an interchange seemed to serve U.S. and Japanese interests Navy Issues and PSI -------------- ¶5. (C) Improving the frequency and depth of naval exercises with India is a priority for the Government of Japan, whether on a bilateral or multilateral basis. Japan sees the April U.S./Japan/India maritime training event as proof that such efforts are beneficial. AVM Moriya expressed interest in finding some role for Japan in the U.S. Navy's planned September exercise with India, Australia and Singapore in the Bay of Bengal. Both Vice AVM Moriya and DDG Umemoto emphasized the critical role the Indian Navy plays in securing sea lanes and fighting terrorism. Each said continued exchanges and training are critical for strengthening Japan-India military-to-military ties. DG Ofuru said Japan wishes to host an increased number of Indian ship visits each year. ¶6. (C) In the context of naval exchanges, DG Ofuru told DASD Clad that Japan intends to reevaluate its defense relations policies with a number of countries. Japan aims to upgrade bilateral defense exchanges with "special" countries like Russia, China, Australia and India and each requires a different type of attention, he said. While not offering specifics, Ofuru assured DASD Clad that Japan would turn to the U.S. for advice on how to approach the "special" relationships. ¶7. (C) On PSI, AVM Moriya said Indian Defense Secretary Dutt told him in April that New Delhi was adopting a "wait-and-see" attitude on participation in PSI, with the implication being a slight shift in India's approach. Moriya also said the Indians have signaled their strong wish to expand technical cooperation with Japan's Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF). Japan sees this as useful in helping to modernize "the primary seapower watching the Indian Ocean." Multilateral Relations -------------- ¶8. (C) Japan seeks to engage India in a variety of multilateral formats. Government of Japan officials repeatedly underscored shared political values between India, Australia, Japan and the U.S., saying that forums supporting any or all of those members are useful for promoting regional security. DDG Umemoto emphasized the need to avoid provoking the Chinese in such discussions by focusing on non-confrontational issues like disaster relief and humanitarian assistance. DASD Clad agreed with the assessment but said that a robust bilateral relationship with the Indian military, government, and non-governmental entities was perfectly compatible with maintaining good relations with third countries. Early Thinking on Deliverables from PM Abe's Planned Visit -------------- -------------- ¶9. (C) In meetings with JETRO's Watanabe and Washio, DASD Clad asked about early thinking about the broader dimensions of the Indo-Japanese relationship. Watanabe said he was involved for some years in bringing small groups of influential Indians to Japan, and Japanese investors to India. By 2007, four hundred and seventy-four Japanese companies were invested in India; fully one-third of these, Watanabe said, have made their India investments in the last twelve months. The big prize lies in building up India's infrastructure, especially its road, rail and aviation infrastructure. ¶10. (C) Over the last 18 months, Watanabe has taken seventy Japanese companies on three visits, during which he regularly meets PM Manmohan Singh. Ten of these seventy companies have now invested in India. JETRO has opened three offices-one each in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. JETRO executive vice president Washio said his office was scoping out some specific commercial or trading initiatives for Abe to announce whilst in Delhi; one initiative being contemplated would link India, Vietnam and Japan. ¶11. (U) DASD Clad has cleared this message. SCHIEFFER