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We need to do a few things to bring normalcy in Kashmir that go beyond tourism statistics. We need to keep Pakistan out of the equation. We need to genuinely empower the elected government and allow the State to be governed from Srinagar and not from Delhi.
In an article of November 22, 2004, on India-Pakistan relations (http://www.saag.org/papers12/paper1169.html), I had written as follows:
Kashmir has this instant ability to exclude everything except the known and the immediate.
The recent killings of minorities, migrant workers, and local police officers in the Kashmir Valley have led to an impression that the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir is once again becoming uncontrollable. On ground, however, the situation is said to be firmly under the control of the Indian State. This does not mean that terrorism has been eliminated; small terrorist groups continue to operate and attack soft targets, heightening the sen
In its June 2004 issue, Jane¿s Intelligence Review, has carried a report on the "Workshop on International Terrorism in South East Asia and its likely Implications for South Asia"
Southeast Asia has been one of the key components of Japan's foreign policy in the post-Cold War period. It is one region where Japan's diplomacy has accomplished considerable success in coming to terms with the challenges posed by the legacies of the Second World War. Successive Japanese governments since 1952 have always maintained that the stability and security of ASEAN countries are closely tied to Japan's security and prosperity.
The forthcoming APEC annual summit, to be held in Beijing in November, provides an opportunity for both Shinzo Abe and Xi Jingping to meet for the first time and perhaps move in the direction of working out at least a limited "detente" in their relations.
After the recently held Tokyo Conference on Afghanistan, it is expected that Japan will take its own initiatives to make follow-up measures under the two mechanisms formulated at the Tokyo Conference -- the Tokyo Declaration and the Tokyo Framework.
Japan is beginning to get nervous about the direction of US policies and is beginning to question the stability of the US-Japan Security Treaty, according to a scholar based in Australia.
One concrete outcome of the bilateral talks between the visiting Japanese Prime Minister and the US President was that the US was able to get Japan closer to making a commitment to the Trans Pacific Cooperation Agreement which the US has been advocating since 2011.
The challenges that Japan and India face are largely complementary and thus hold promise for enhancing ties. A robust India-Japan partnership will support and promote India's increasingly assertive and strong role as well as Japan's leading position in the east Asian region.
To enjoy its demographic dividend, India must stop looking down upon low-skilled workers and treat them with dignity. Examples and experiences from other countries are there to learn from - Japan is one.
The four-point agreement that was worked out by State Councillor Yang Jichei and Japanese National Security Adviser Shotaro Yachi to enable the meeting between President Xi Jinping of China and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan indicates that Tokyo has walked the extra mile to assuage the Chinese.
Japan's engagement with SE Asia focuses through expanding economic ties, cooperation on maritime issues and building close diplomatic relations through Abe's travel diplomacy. This is Japan's 'pivot' to SE Asia and it is here to stay given its strategic rivalry with China.
One is still not sure whether Prime Minister Abe will be inclined to let the defence budget cross the self-imposed limit of 1 per cent of the GNP. Only once in the 1980s Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone crossed the Rubicon. But considering the 'extraordinarily grave' security situation in East Asia, Abe may feel impelled to do so.
At the recent seventh Japan-Mekong Summit in Tokyo in the first week of July, both Japan and the Mekong countries reiterated their resolve to implement an ambitious cooperation programme called New Tokyo Strategy 2015 for Mekong-Japan Cooperation for the three years covering 2016-18.
Tokyo's growing engagement with the countries of the region is a strong reflection of Japan's desire to play a greater role in regional security. As Beijing continues to take assertive and aggressive actions in the region, Tokyo has found a way to renew its partnerships with the key actors of the region.
One can see two major reasons for PM Shinzo Abe's decision to change the policy on arms exports. First, Abe is keen to remove many of the self-imposed taboos that have stood in the way of Japan becoming a 'normal country'. At a time when the security environment in East Asia has become so tense, Japan cannot afford to neglect the modernisation of its defence industry.
Japan's new Prime Minister understands very well that peace and strategic stability in East Asia would depend on how effectively Japan and the US maintain their security alliance. And the Obama administration is supportive of Abe's moves and would be interested in initiating regular triangular security talks with Tokyo and Seoul.
Despite the change of guards in Japan, the new government has reaffirmed its commitment to maintain "global and strategic partnership" with India
Japan has announced its new military policy changes, amidst escalating tensions, particularly in Northeast Asia. In a major military policy shift, its new National Defense Programme Guidelines has called for shifting of forces from the northern islands of Hokkaido towards the southern islands,
One compelling reason for Japan to adopt the new energy policy was the Abe government's recognition that in the absence of nuclear energy, which accounted for 30% of the total electricity until recently, the country had to pay heavily for importing oil and gas from abroad.
The passing of the security legislation recently has fulfilled at least partly PM Abe's long-drawn quest towards making Japan a normal country. He has always believed that Article 9 of the US authored Japanese constitution, which put severe restrictions on Japan's right to collective self-defence, should be amended.
The nuclear debate in Japan has given scope for fresh anxieties within the region and beyond about the country's nuclear programme, particularly its recycling programme of extracted plutonium from spent nuclear fuel.
The rise, if you want to call it that, of another Asian power on the flanks of China, one which also has difficulties with Beijing, is to India's advantage. New Delhi is not unaware of the geopolitical benefits.
Japan is facing extremely dangerous situation in North East Asia where North Korea is developing nuclear weapons. It is also witnessing China's excessive assertiveness in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. So, situations like these will influence the way Japan will shape its security policy, says eminent Japanese scholar Prof. Shinichi Kitaoka.
The ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) faces its first crucial test, after it captured power in August last year, when the House of Councillors election takes place on 11 July. The outcome of the election will have a great impact on the effectiveness of new Prime Minister Mr.Naoto Kan.
India and Japan may soon reach an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, even as Tokyo insists on New Delhi to sign the NPT, says Amb. Hirabayashi Hiroshi, former Japanese ambassador to India and the present President of Japan-India Association.
While New Delhi’s desire to cultivate closer defense ties with Tokyo is clear, its overall strategic approach is much less so.
Peace talks between Japan and Russia have remained at halt ever since the World War II.
Imposition of wider restrictions on technology exports to the other
The recent decision by the government of Naoto Kan to denuclearise Japan by 2050, regardless of its naivete, has certain traits that could help in overhauling the political economy of Japan's energy sector.
Japanese ODA has eased the burden of borrowing in the Indian market. Moreover, with the Japanese economy still struggling to induce growth, investments in India offer an avenue to earn interest income. Increased Japanese FDI is also likely to give a huge boost to the Indian economy.
