The prime ministers of India and Japan had few breakthroughs to announce on trade in civilian nuclear power technology following a summit Monday, but they signaled the countries are moving closer to an agreement.
With plans to supply a quarter of its power from reactors by 2050, India represents one of the largest potential markets for Japanese reactor manufacturers like Toshiba, Hitachi and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. A 2008 Nuclear Suppliers Group agreement created a framework to end a ban on supplying nuclear technology to India, which is one of four states that have not signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Although years of negotiations over measures that would open trade between India and Japan have not yet resulted in an agreement.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently travelled to Japan, where Nikkei reported that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promised that his country would double its direct investment in India over the next five years. The leaders also discussed a potential cooperative agreement for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. In a joint statement quoted by the Economic Times, the prime ministers called for accelerated negotiations on the agreement and said their countries had made significant progress in talks over the last few months. Modi also expressed appreciation for a recent move by the Japanese government to remove six Indian organizations from a list of entities facing Japanese trade restrictions over proliferation concerns.