Forex

Japan says that it is interested in civil nuclear energy cooperation. It will also collaborate with India for emissions control as per the guidelines of the Kyoto Protocol.


The Japanese Ambassador to India, Hideaiki Domichi, speaking at a carbon trading conference in New Delhi, said that the country is interested in civil nuclear energy cooperation and that nuclear energy will help India in meeting its energy needs in an environmentally sustainable manner.
The timing of the reaffirmation could not have been better for the Indian government. The Japanese Ambassador to India has indicated its support to Indo-US nuclear deal and added that it’ll be good for India’s future. The Congress-led UPA government at the Centre is nowadays busy garnering political support at home for its stand on nuclear energy and the Indo-US nuclear deal. It faces a trust vote in the Parliament on 22 July to seek political backing for the deal.
After the vote the government will be seeking the approval of IAEA board of governors for the text of the safeguards agreement. Japan, 40% of whose energy comes from nuclear power plants, has come out in support of India’s quest for civil nuclear energy cooperation with the global community.
Science and Technology Minister of India Kapil Sibal said India was delighted with the Japanese stand on civil nuclear energy cooperation. Indian government has recently submitted the safeguards agreement to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). After the IAEA signs the agreement, it’ll go to the NSG for approval and then finally to the US Congress. Recently the group of eight industrialized countries, of which Japan is a part, had decided to adopt a “more robust approach” to civil nuclear energy cooperation with India.