GFCH Article Flash: Old Friends, New Challenges

[GFCH (India)]

OLD FRIENDS, NEW CHALLENGES
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Courtesy: The Pioneer, Monday, 10 June 2013
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By K G Suresh
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India's relations with Japan are important not only for its economic
development but also because Japan is India's natural and
indispensable ally in its quest for stability and peace in the region,
especially in the Indo-Pacific and East Asia

Of all the recent summit-level meetings Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
had with the leadership of different countries last month, perhaps the
most significant was his engagement with the Japanese leadership.

While a grave trust deficit remains at the core of the relations with
China in the backdrop of Beijing’s expansionist agenda, uncertainty
prevails on the relationship with Afghanistan in the light of the
proposed withdrawal of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation troops, the
growing strength of the Taliban and the volatile ties with Pakistan.

In contrast, India and Japan have shared fraternal ties since time
immemorial. Exchanges between the two nations date back to the 6th
century. Indian Buddhist priests, who migrated to Japan through Korea,
laid the first foundations of people-to-people relationships between
the two countries. Ties were then renewed in the Meiji Era when
Shourindramohan Tagore of Kolkata sent three musical instruments to
Emperor Mutsuhito in 1877. In the days before independence,
Rabindranath Tagore, who visited Japan several times, pioneered
efforts to bring the two nations together.

India and Japan signed a peace treaty and established diplomatic
relations on April 28, 1952. Ever since, the two countries have
enjoyed cordial relations. In the post World War II period, India’s
iron ore helped Japan in its recovery from devastation and since 1986
while Japan continues to be India’s largest aid donor.

Prime Minister Singh’s visit also assumed significance as it took
place in the backdrop of the recent Chinese incursions across the Line
of Control in Ladakh as also Beijing’s aggressive postures vis-a-vis
the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands in East China sea currently under Japanese
control, besides its obstinacy in South China sea.

In the political and security fields, the two Prime Ministers decided
to further improve joint maritime exercises between the Japan Maritime
Self-Defence Force and the Indian Navy as well as to establish a Joint
Working Group on the US-2 amphibian aircraft, while on civil nuclear
cooperation, the two leaders confirmed that their countries would
accelerate negotiations for the early conclusion of a bilateral
agreement on cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Apart from Japan deciding to provide 17.7 billion yen for the Campus
Development Project to Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (Phase 2),
the two countries agreed to cooperate in the areas of large-scale
infrastructure and energy projects including the Delhi-Mumbai
Industrial Corridor and high speed railway system in India.

The Chinese nervousness over these developments was apparent from a
recent article in the state-run Global Times, which said strategic
cooperation with Japan “can only bring trouble to India”. It also
expressed apprehension that there may be some tacit understanding in
strategic cooperation between India and Japan, “given the long-lasting
islands’ dispute and China-India border confrontation”.

Notwithstanding China’s reservations, both Japan and India share a
symbiotic relationship. It is not just India that needs Japan; it’s a
two-way street. In its assessment of Mr Singh’s visit, the Japanese
Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in unambiguous terms that, “India
is strategically an important country for Japan, sharing such basic
values as freedom, democracy, fundamental human rights and the rule of
law, and positioned on sea lanes between the Middle East and East
Asia.”

Addressing the capital’s intelligentsia close on the heels of the
Prime Minister’s visit, Yasuhisa Kawamura, Charge’ d’Affaires at the
Japanese Embassy in Delhi said, “A strong India is in Japan’s interest
and a strong Japan is in India’s interest.”

Launching the Joint Study on ‘Framework for Indo-Japanese Strategic
Partnership and Cooperation’ conducted by the Vivekananda
International Foundation and the Japan Institute for National
Fundamentals on the occasion, its patron and former Lok Sabha Speaker
PA Sangma said, “Apart from a shared history and strategic concerns,
both nations also had an enormous capacity to absorb crisis and face
challenges”.

In fact, the study, a key document pertaining to the future of ties
between the two countries, identifies the irritants and impediments in
the relationship and suggests measures to remove them and further
strengthen ties in the days to come. Recognising the numerous
complementary attributes of the two countries, the study recommends
that they use them for establishing an ‘Asian Concert’ with other
democracies in the region.

Noting that the potential to develop industrial relations between
India and Japan is huge, the study regrets that it still remains
largely untapped. “There remains certain institutional and political
constraints which prohibit growth of industrial and technological
cooperation, especially in strategic industries.

Japan had been one of the top five investors in India for long.
However, other countries have surpassed Japan in terms of their
investment and market share in Indian economy. Although India
continued to have the top ranking as a promising country in the long
term, in surveys conducted by the Japan Bank of International
Cooperation, Japanese investments in 2011-12 accounted for just four
per cent of the total foreign direct investment inflows into India.
Ironically, as against over 16,000 Japanese companies doing business
in China, only 300 firms are engaged in India. Dividend distribution
tax, Transfer price taxation, Priority sector lending, and upper limit
on FDI in insurance sector have been some of the key factors impeding
greater Japanese investment in India. It is time both countries thrash
out these irritants for mutual benefit.

Of late, Chinese maritime assertiveness has risen rapidly in the South
China Sea, East China Sea, the Yellow Sea, and in the Indian Ocean
Region. China has also redoubled its efforts to establish and
strengthen Strategic Land Bridges and a String of Pearl from the
Middle-East through the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea, to meet
its energy and natural resources’ demands. The tactics used to achieve
the strategic goals pose a grave threat to the interests of many
nation-states in the region. To counter-balance the Chinese goal of
occupying the Asian continental space, the study proposes that the
concerned states develop a Rimland security approach, wherein India,
Japan, South Korea and the littoral countries of Southeast Asia
develop strategic partnerships to ensure preservation of peace and
stability in the region.

Underlining the fact that China will use its veto against the
inclusion of India or Japan as permanent members of the United Nations
Security Council, the study advocates that both countries lay greater
emphasis on other international forums such as the East-Asian Summit,
Asean+6, G20, etc, where the two have rights at par with all other
countries.

The relations between the two countries need to be strengthened at the
people to people level too. While there is a bit of Japan in every
Indian today, from the ubiquitous Maruti to popular cartoon
characters, it is essential that there is enhanced learning of
Japanese language in Indian institutions and Indian languages in
Japan. While French has become passé, German is taught even in
Kendriya Vidyalayas and efforts are on to include Mandarin in the
Central Board of Secondary Education curriculum, more and more
Government and private educational institutions should offer Japanese
as a subject. It would also contribute to employment generation. The
Japanese Government and corporate should chip in to make this a
success.

India’s relations with Japan are important not only for its economic
development but also because Japan is India’s natural and
indispensable ally in its quest for stability and peace in Asia,
particularly, East Asia and the Indo-Pacific.
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