India, Japan walk Chinese tightrope

[unhappycamper]

http://atimes.com/atimes/Japan/JAP-01-270114.html



India, Japan walk Chinese tightrope
By Narayani Basu
Jan 27, '14

It's been an interesting time recently on India's foreign policy front vis-a-vis Japan. In December 2013, Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko arrived in the country on one of their rare overseas visits. They were followed by Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, and now by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe - both in January. Abe's visit is even more significant. He was the first Japanese prime minister to be the chief guest at India's annual Republic Day parade and arrived as South Korean President Park Geun-Hye exited New Delhi.

In all fairness, the closeness of India's ties to Japan shouldn't come as much of a surprise. The two countries have a historic precedent of friendship, right from Japan's Meiji era, to the modern post Cold War period. Bilateral ties have been marked by economic cooperation, which in the late 1950s meant Japanese Official Development Assistance, as well as the acknowledgement that both countries shared common views with regard to political strategy.

The recent closeness is particularly interesting, however, seen from the point of view of India's much-vaunted Look East Policy. The strategy kicked off in the early 1990s as part of a bid to strengthen India's economic and strategic engagements with countries in East Asia. Over the two decades since then, its vision has been hampered by the growing influence of China, and unexpected geopolitical volatility in the region.

In 2011, India and Japan began to get serious about their relationship, with the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Under CEPA, tariffs were slashed on more than 8,000 products, including apparel, agricultural products and machinery, labor and investments. It's still too early to provide a clear confirmation with regard to the full impact of the CEPA, but it is certainly safe to rely on statistics.