Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [Images] on Wednesday left for Japan [Images] for a three-day official visit from December 13-15.

The visit had been lying under the radar thanks largely to domestic controversies.

In a departure statement, Dr Singh, who is accompanied by a high-level delegation, said, he will discuss with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe [Images] ways to reinforce strategic focus in global partnership and move towards a more
comprehensive economic engagement.

Dr Singh said he will seek to develop mutually beneficial cooperation over an entire range of matters, including security and terrorism, energy, transport, science and technology and culture.

"I see this journey as part of the increasing eastern orientation of India's foreign policy and our quest for greater engagement with countries in the larger east Asian region," Dr Singh said.

Dr Singh said India-Japan bilateral relations are poised to enter a new and dynamic phase, driven by a shared desire to enhance mutual relationhip.

"In the evolving regional and international environment, India and Japan increasingly find that their long-term political, economic and strategic interests are converging," he said.

"I will look forward to using this visit to elevate India-Japan relations to a qualitatively new level," Dr Singh said.

An official in the Prime Minister's Office told rediff.com that this visit could potentially be the most important after the July 2005 visit to Washington, DC, for a summit with President George W Bush [Images].

That Japan put high marquee value on the prime minister's visit is evident from the fact that Dr Singh has been invited to address a joint session of the Diet, Japanese Parliament.

While that is the media highlight, the real action is expected to take place during Dr Singh's summit with Abe and at a luncheon with Japan's top business leaders.

Buzz is that a comprehensive economic partnership agreement encompassing heavy Japanese investment in and tech transfer to India is in the offing.

Other issues likely to come up at the Dr Singh-Abe summit include the recent Indo-US nuke deal.

Japan with its commitment to non-proliferation is a key voice in the Nuclear Suppliers Group; Dr Singh is expected to brief his counterpart on the contours of the deal just okayed by the US Congress.

Also expected to dominate the bilateral exchanges is the China question with both Japan and India discussing ways to co-exist with their common neighbour.

While Minister for Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath is already in Japan, the prime minister's entourage comprises the likes of Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan, principal secretary, Commerce Secretary G K Pillai and assorted other heavyweights.

With PTI inputs