NEW DELHI - Taking forward their congruence on a range of global issues, India, the US and Japan have decided to ramp up cooperation in areas ranging from the Asia-Pacific to Afghanistan, Africa and Myanmar.
Senior officials of India, the US and Japan Monday held their third trilateral dialogue here that focused on firming up strategies to combat piracy, bolstering maritime security and shared their perspectives on the evolving Asia-Pacific architecture.
The officials of the three countries held talks for five to six hours, indicating intense discussions to find more areas of commonality between the three leading democracies.
They had discussions on a strategic overview of the Asia-Pacific region, Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson of the external affairs ministry, told reporters a day after the talks Tuesday.
They discussed issues relating to the ASEAN summit and the 18-nation East Asia Summit, he said.
They also decided to intensify their development cooperation in Myanmar, Afghanistan and Africa, he said.
India is engaged with both the US and Japan on bilateral tracks in developmental projects in Africa.
The decision by the three influential countries to cooperate closely in Afghanistan acquires an added importance in view of the withdrawal of international combat troops from that country.
The focus, the spokesperson stressed, was on expanding cooperation in maritime security and anti-piracy operations.
During the talks, the Indian delegation was led by Gautam Bambawale, joint secretary in charge of East Asia in the external affairs ministry.
Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake and Deputy Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Kenji Hiramatsu led the US and Japanese delegations, respectively.
India sought clarifications from the US about its so-called Asia pivot strategy which envisages roping in New Delhi as the lynchpin of security in the region.
Informed sources said Beijing was not discussed explicitly, but the discussions on maritime security took note of Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea and its forays into the Indian Ocean.
The three sides also discussed how they could cooperate more closely to shape the East Asia architecture and issues that would figure in the forthcoming East Asia Summit in Cambodia. (AINS)