India for a strong Japan, says former envoy

New Delhi, Nov.8 (ANI): India wants to see a strong Japan in the context of China's rise, according to a former Indian envoy to Japan.

Participating in a discussion on "US-Japan Alliance: Implications of the Rise of China and India" at the Observer Research Foundation on Monday, former Indian Ambassador to Japan Hemant Krishan Singh said India was of the view that a strong Japan would play a positive role in maintaining the strategic balance in the region.

Singh also noted that India's role in East Asia is good for the region as it could play a "positive balancer".

Initiating the discussion, Dr. Sheila A. Smith of the Council on Foreign Relations said the rise of China and India has raised concerns in Tokyo and Washington about their competitiveness.

Dr. Smith, a well known Japan expert, noted that Japan's "strategic discomfort" has been growing in the recent years in the context of the changes unfolding in East Asia, particularly, the rise of China.

Chairing the discussion, Prof. K.V. Kesavan, Distinguished Fellow, Observer Research Foundation, pointed that the US-Japan Alliance is a product of the Cold War period and that the two countries have been making necessary changes to adjust to the changing situation

The discussion noted that the decades-old US-Japan alliance has also come under strain as structural shifts are taking place in the region. In this context, the alliance between Washington and Tokyo is today adapting to the changing realities.

Indian strategist, Prof. C. Raja Mohan of the Centre for Policy Research has observed that India has been slowly adapting to the changes in the international politics and is today willing to play a more active role in the strategic issues.

Professor Raja Mohan, however, asked how far Washington and Tokyo want to go in taking the trilateral relationship between the three countries forward. (ANI)