Article Posted on : - Oct 19, 2011

NEW DELHI (PTI): With both India and Japan keen to bolster their strategic and military ties, Defence Minister A K Antony will be leaving for Tokyo on a three-day visit early next month.

Antony will leave for Japan on November 1 and will hold talks with his Japanese counterpart to discuss ways to boost military ties between the two countries in fields ranging from counter-terrorism and anti-piracy measures to defence research and development and training, officials said.

India and Japan have been working towards enhancing their defence relationship to address regional and global security challenges, a defence ministry official said on Monday.

India and Japan share common concerns on extremism, terrorism and nuclear proliferation.

The navies and coast guards of the two countries are already exercising together to learn from each other and build interoperability.

Recently, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had visited New Delhi and urged for a greater interaction between the Navies of the two countries.

He also urged New Delhi that with its plans of having a three aircraft carrier navy, it can keep the Asian sea lines stable and such a step can assure Vietnamese, Americans, South Koreans "if not the Chinese".