India, Japan stand together on South China Sea; discuss partnership on Chabahar

NEW DELHI: Despite China warning India and

Japan

against any dalliance over South China Sea (SCS), the two countries brought up the issue again in the summit meeting between PM Narendra Modi and his counterpart Shinzo Abe as they stressed the significance of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in resolving SCS disputes.

In another significant development which will be watched closely in Beijing, Modi and Abe also discussed the possibility of working together on the strategic Chabahar port in Iran which will help India access Afghanistan and central Asia by bypassing Pakistan. The port is seen as a counter to China's Gwadar port in Pakistan's Balochistan province.

For the second successive year, India and Japan specifically mentioned SCS in their joint statement issued after the summit, even though there was no direct reference to the international tribunal order which dismissed China's 'historic' rights over SCS waters in July this year.

"Regarding the South China Sea, the two Prime Ministers stressed the importance of resolving the disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law including the UNCLOS," said the joint statement, reiterating the view that all parties should show utmost respect to the UNCLOS as it established the international legal order of the seas and oceans.

The international tribunal set up under UNCLOS dismissed China's 9-dash-line which claims sovereignty over almost the entire SCS. Earlier this week, China's Global Times had warned India that it may suffer "great losses" in terms of business and trade if it got embroiled in SCS disputes.

On

Chabahar

, the 2 PMs directed their officials to expeditiously work out details for cooperation.

"The two Prime Ministers welcomed the prospects of cooperation between the two countries for promoting peace and prosperity in South Asia and neighboring region, such as

Iran

and Afghanistan, through both bilateral and trilateral cooperation, inter-alia, in the development of infrastructure and connectivity for Chabahar," said the joint statement.

TOI had first reported on May 15 this year, and then again on September 8, that Japan was interested in working with India on the Chabahar port project.

In an exclusive interaction with TOI in September, Japan foreign ministry had said that while it was already helping India improve road connectivity in the northeastern region, Japan would also positively consider any proposal to extend such cooperation beyond India's western border. India signed a tripartite agreement this year with Iran and Afghanistan hoping to develop the Chabahar port into a transit hub which would help them bypass Pakistan. India has committed $500 million for development of the port.

The India-Japan December 2015 joint statement had said that the 2 countries had decided to develop and strengthen "reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructures that augment connectivity within India and between India and other countries in the region".