Dear Readers,
Japan Premier Shinzo Abe’s three-day visit to India was
recently in the news and could be important for your exams.
The Japanese Prime Minister arrived in New Delhi on December
11, 2015 to hold talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. The primary aim
was to strengthen bilateral relations and lay the foundation for special
strategic ties. In this article, we will look at the important agreements
signed between the two nations.
Background
The annual summit took place during December 12-13, 2015. Both
the Prime Ministers agreed to upgrade the ‘Special Strategic and Global
Partnership’ into an all-encompassing, goal-oriented partnership so as to
achieve the aims of India and Japan Vision 2025.
This was their third meet in a month; they met at the G-20 summit in Antalaya,
Turkey (14-15 November) and at the East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
(21 November).
Major Agreements Signed
Defence
· Agreement
on Transfer of Defence Equipment: This was signed to facilitate a framework to enhance cooperation in defence and
security by enabling transfer of requisite defence equipment and technology
that would aid in implementing joint research and development projects.
· Agreement
for protection of classified military information: This will ensure mutual protection
of classified military information sent to each other, given that the terms of
protection are consistent with the national laws of the receiving party.
The deals will enable Japan to explore
opportunities for future projects in defence, including the sale of US-2
amphibious aircraft to India, which has been in negotiations for two years.
Economy
· Amendment
of Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement: This deal will amend the 1989 convention
between India and Japan for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of
fiscal evasion as regards income taxes. It will also help to curb the accumulation
of black money.
· Statement
of Intent between NITI Aayog and the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan
(IEEJ): This statement necessitates cooperation between the two bodies in
order to achieve the objective of analysing the energy sector and tackle
problems related to it.
Education
· Letter of
Intent on the strategic international cooperation programme between India’s
Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Japan Science and Technology
Agency (JSTA). This will promote and support collaborative research projects,
research laboratories, joint seminars and symposia, among other meetings
between institutes supported by DST and JSTA.
· Letter of
Intent on establishing a young researcher’s exchange programme between
India’s DST and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. This is to
establish a reciprocal fellowship programme for capacity building and human
resource development (HRD) in frontier areas of science and technology.
· MoU between
Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A) and Japan’s National Graduate Institute
for Policy Studies (GRIPS): This is to increase collaboration and enrich
the intellectual environment of the two institutions.
· MoC in
the field of education between India’s HRD Ministry and Japan’s Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. This is to enhance cooperation
between educational institutions and pave way for exchange of aspiring students
between the two nations.
Miscellaneous
Agreements
· Agreement
on high-speed trains: This ascertains cooperation in developing the
Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed train corridor using Japan’s technological, financial
and technical assistance. Japan is set to provide $12 billion loan for the
project.
· Agreement
on cooperation in “peaceful uses of nuclear energy”: Japan had been cagey
on its agreement on the deal, being the only country to have suffered disastrous
nuclear attacks. However, key details of the deal were agreed upon. India emphasised
that it will keep its right to test atomic weapons and refused to be shackled
by any international pact(s) that restrict its options.
· MoC between
India’s Ministry of Railways and Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism: This establishes areas to facilitate extensive technological
cooperation, including information sharing, exchange of officials and technical
personnel, participation of other organisations and ministries, and conducting
joint research.
· Technological
cooperation between India’s Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) and
Japan’s Railways Technical Research Institute (JRTRI): This pact proposes
cooperation in the domains of safety in train operations, advanced maintenance
techniques and use of environment-friendly technologies, etc.
· MoC
between India’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Japan’s
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries: This will boost cooperation
in development of skilled personnel and institutional exchange between training
institutes, promote sustainable forest management and conservation and forest disaster
prevention.
· MoC
between India’s Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation and Japan’s
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: This deal establishes the medical
products regulation dialogue and cooperation framework to enable constructive
dialogue in areas related to pharmaceutical use, biological products and
medical devices.
· MoC between
Andhra Pradesh and Toyama Prefecture: This deal will help to strengthen existing
ties between Andhra Pradesh and Toyama by facilitating mutual collaboration
between their governments, institutions and companies.
· MoU
between Kerala and Lake Nakaumi, Lake Shinji and Mt. Daisen area Mayors Association: As per this Kerala and the Sanin region of Japan have agreed to develop investment,
trade and economic relations with special focus on small and medium enterprises
(SMEs).
These are the main points about the Japanese Premier’s visit
to India. If you can understand these, you can easily attempt related questions.
To get fresh updates on your Facebook & Twitter timelines, subscribe to our pages created specifically for them. We will be posting only those exam specific links on these pages:
Bank PO:
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pagalguybankpo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaGaLGuYBankPO
SSC & Other Exams:
FB: https://www.facebook.com/Pagalguy-SSC-CGL-Others-879667042056262/timeline/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pagalguyssc
UPSC:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Pagalguy-UPSC-951926044840262/timeline/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaGaLGuYUPSC