China tiff: Japan briefs India, US

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Indrani Bagchi TNN

New Delhi: Signalling their growing alarm, senior Japanese officials gave a classified briefing to Indian and US officials on the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands this week. China and Japan are locked in a territorial dispute over the islands in the East China Sea that has recently escalated to a level that has rung alarm bells among strategists.
This was part of the third trilateral meet among India, Japan and the US, where the countries explored possibilities of working together in the region. The trilateral has attracted criticism from China, which blames Tokyo for spreading its anxieties about Beijing’s rise among other countries.
The trilateral, the third in the past year, has evolved into a deeper interaction where the three nations exchange strategic perceptions of the region. In the past months, India, Japan and the US have been working together to develop trade and economic linkages in south-east Asia. Myanmar also plays a key role as all three countries have reformed their ties with the junta-ruled nation.
India has proposed an east-west corridor connecting India via Myanmar with Thailand and further all the way to Vietnam. India, Myanmar and Thailand are working on a trilateral highway that aims to provide connectivity and improve economic linkages within this region. The trilateral effort will augment this.