NEW DELHI, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- A civil nuclear deal between India and Japan is unlikely to be inked during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tokyo for an annual bilateral summit, the Japanese envoy in New Delhi has said.
"We are working around this line. We are in the process of technical discussions. With regard to signing, at this moment I cannot say it will be signed because we are in the process of technical discussions," Japanese Ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu was quoted as saying on Monday.
He added: "We are now having technical discussions and the point is what we agreed upon last year was the agreement will be signed after the technical details are finalized."
After years of negotiations, India and Japan signed a memorandum on cooperating in nuclear energy during Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to New Delhi last year with a rider that certain technical and legal issues have to be resolved before a final agreement is inked.
A joint statement issued after the 2015 summit between Modi and Abe said: "The two Prime Ministers welcomed the agreement reached between the two governments for cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy."
