Japan and India are set to agree on the restart of talks on bilateral cooperation in nuclear energy development during a summit meeting of the two countries’ leaders scheduled for later this month, Japanese government sources said Monday.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters earlier in the day, “We have judged it sensible to negotiate an accord with India on nuclear cooperation.”
Bilateral talks on civilian nuclear cooperation, launched in 2010, have been suspended since the Fukushima nuclear crisis triggered by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to promote Japanese exports of nuclear power plants to India under such an accord, when he meets with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh on May 29 in Tokyo, the sources said.
The move comes despite widespread concerns over the safety of nuclear power generation following the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi complex.
The Indian side has “expressed strong hope for a nuclear agreement with Japan even after the nuclear accident,” Suga said. “As a country having experienced a disaster, (Japan) is responsible for contributing to the improved safety of atomic energy by sharing knowledge and lessons with the world.”
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