New Delhi: Negotiators from India and Japan met today to prepare the grounds for negotiations on the comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) that will cover trade and investment.

The agenda for discussions would include the framework of the negotiations and modalities of the negotiations and other major areas such as trade in goods, trade in services and investment.

India and Japan had agreed to explore an economic partnership agreement during the visit of prime minister Koizumi of Japan to India in April 2005. An India-Japan Joint Study Group (JSG) was set up for the purpose in June that year and its report came in 2006. The JSG had recommended that the two countries launch inter-governmental negotiations to develop CEPA.

Earlier, Japan was unwilling to bring agricultural items under the economic partnership agreement but later relented to India's demand. The negotiations are scheduled to be completed in the next two years. The agreement would include trade in manufactured goods and services.

Both the countries had agreed to launch negotiations on a CEPA when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Japan last year.

Deputy minister for foreign affairs Masaharu Kohno is leading the Japanese team while commerce secretary G K Pillai heads the Indian team. India's exports to Japan in 2005-06 were valued at 2.4 billion dollars while imports stood at 3.5 billion dollars.