Singapore, Nov 21: The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, met his Japanese counterpart, Yasuo Fukuda, here on Wednesday.

During the meeting both leaders reiterated their commitment to their countries bilateral strategic and global partnership.

This was Dr. Singh’s first meeting with Fukuda. They agreed on the importance of maintaining regular high level exchanges and the need to expedite progress on projects that are part of the Special Economic Partnership Initiative.

Both Prime Ministers reviewed the progress in regard to the Dedicated Freight Corridor and the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.

They also shared the view that the East Asia Summit is an important building block for the creation of an Asian Economic Community and pledged to work closely to further their objective.

Besides, they agreed to strengthen their cooperation in regional and multilateral fora on important issues such as UN Security Council Reforms and Climate Change.

Prime Minister Fukuda invited Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Japan next year. Dr. Singh has accepted the invitation with pleasure. (ANI)