HATOYAMA AND SINGH ADVANCE BILATERAL SECURITY,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 000040 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/INS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/12/2020 TAGS: PGOV PREL PARM IN SUBJECT: HATOYAMA AND SINGH ADVANCE BILATERAL SECURITY, BUSINESS COOPERATION Classified By: Deputy Political Counselor Les Viguerie for reasons 1.4 (B,D) ¶1. (U) SUMMARY: Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama paid his first visit to India December 27 - 29, continuing the tradition of annual bilateral meetings. The visit focused on security issues and economic ties and produced an "Action Plan to Advance Security Cooperation" that establishes a new senior dialogue between defense and foreign ministries. In a press conference, PM Hatoyama said that the Indian government agreed that U.S. and Chinese ratification of the CTBT would change the terms of India's decision to agree to the CTBT. END SUMMARY. A Tradition of Annual Summits: Just Under the Wire -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) Japan and India have held annual, summit-level meetings since 2005 in affirmation of their Strategic and Global Partnership. PM Singh visited Tokyo last October. This was Hatoyama's first visit to India since his August election, but it was the leaders' third bilateral interaction. In Mumbai, Hatoyama met with the Governor of Maharashtra and Indian industry leaders and paid tribute to the victims of the 26/11 attack. In New Delhi he met with Sonia Gandhi, PM Singh, Chairman Rajendra Pachauri of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and business leaders. ¶3. (C) According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry and the MEA, it was unclear until very late in the GAME whether the two sides would be able to pull together the annual summit before the END of 2009. MEA Deputy Secretary Gourangalal Das (East Asia Division) told us that the continuation of the annual summit process by PM Hatoyama and his new government was a significant, positive signal for India. The Joint Statement and MoUs -------------- ¶4. (U) The joint statement released after the visit emphasized economic cooperation. It called for accelerating negotiations toward the bilateral Economic Partnership Agreement/Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA/CEPA) and touched on the positive role of Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) in India. It noted approvingly the commencement of India-Japan cooperation on the Western Dedicated Rail Freight Corridor (DFC) Project, the new Indian Institute of Technology in Hyderabad, and the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project. It declared the two countries would "step up efforts to facilitate (high tech) trade by addressing respective concerns, including export controls." It welcomed the Copenhagen Accord, reaffirmed bilateral resolve to realize comprehensive reform of UNSC, and announced a trial period for a visa waiver program for holders of Diplomatic Passports. It also noted PM Singh's appreciation of PM Hatoyama's East Asian Community initiative. ¶5. (U) Two MoUs emerging from the visit underscored the emphasis the two countries place on business: The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) inked an agreement on "Smart Communities and Eco-friendly Townships" to be built along the Delhi-Mumbai Corridor, and the India Infrastructure Finance Company and Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) jointly established a Project Development Fund (full text of the joint statement available at www.http://meaindia.nic.in/). Continuing Security Cooperation: a New Mechanism -------------- --- ¶6. (C) The nine-point "Action Plan to Advance Security NEW DELHI 00000040 002 OF 002 Cooperation" is based on the Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation between Japan and India issued in October, 2008. The Action Plan laid out concrete steps on security cooperation, including establishment of an annual subcabinet/senior official 2 2 dialogue between the two countries' Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Ministries of Defense. The Action Plan outlined cooperation on issues of common strategic interest including defense, maritime security, counter terrorism, UN reform and non-proliferation. Of note, it called for annual bilateral naval exercises and for "Multilateral Naval Exercises, when possible." According to MEA's Das, the Action Plan is simply a new rubric delineating ongoing cooperation. However, the senior level 2 2 dialog combining MFAs and MODs is a notable new development - the first such arrangement for India (full text of the Action Plan available at www.http://meaindia.nic.in/). The Nuclear Question -------------- ¶7. (C) A Japanese political officer told us it took long, difficult negotiations with the Indians over the joint statement to include a comment on the importance of bringing into force the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). The joint statement mentioned mutual support of "...an early conclusion of a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty," (FMCT) but the Japanese DCM said during his de-brief on the visit that the FMCT was not discussed in depth by the leaders. Indian press seized on PM Hatoyama's comment at the joint press conference that PM Singh told him "should the U.S. and China sign (the CTBT),it would create a new situation." This was interpreted by some press outlets as a signal of continuity with the previous Vajpayee government position that India "would not stand in the way" of the CTBT entering into force (full text of the joint press conference available at available at www.http://meaindia.nic.in/). ¶8. (U) COMMENT: This visit, arranged at the eleventh hour, remained fairly low-profile in the Indian press and had relatively few big deliverables. The most important outcome of the visit was that it sent a clear signal of continuity and commitment to the relationship. It's unclear if the comment about the CTBT attributed to Singh by PM Hatoyama, which hearkens back to the Vajpayee administration's position, was intended to signal a shift in India's position on CTBT. END COMMENT. ROEMER