NEW DELHI: India's engagement with Asia and Europe is expected to get further boost when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh travels to Japan on a bilateral visit and China for the ASEM Summit from October 21.

Singh will begin his two-nation trip with Japan where he will hold talks with the country's new Prime Minister Taro Aso on political and economic ties, including a free trade deal, with an aim of expanding bilateral strategic relations. Singh will also meet Emperor Akihito during his three-day visit.

India and Japan are negotiating an economic partnership agreement and it is hoped that the pact will be signed during the visit.

Aso, who was Japan's foreign minister till last month before being elected as prime minister, is keen to forge strategic ties with India.

Aso was an enthusiastic supporter of the Arc of Freedom and Prosperity, part of which was the "Asian Arc of Democracy", in which he said the arc would include the countries of Central Asia, India, Southeast Asia, the Korean Peninsula and Mongolia.

In the second leg of his five-day visit, Singh will travel to China for the 7th ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) Summit to be held on October 24-25.

The 27-nation grouping, in which India was admitted in 2006, will deliberate on political, economic, social and cultural issues, including matters related to sustainable development.

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