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rime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak decided Monday to launch negotiations for cooperation on the transfer of defense equipment and technology amid the rise of China.

It is the first time that Japan has agreed to start such negotiations with a member of the 10-nation ASEAN according to Japanese officials.

No deal was reached in the meeting between the two leaders in Tokyo on a high-speed rail project between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, for which the Japanese leader pitched his nation'€™s shinkansen bullet train technology.

Abe '€œexpressed his hope'€ that the project will adopt the bullet train system, while Najib '€œexpressed his appreciation for the technology and reliability of shinkansen and noted the interest of Japan'€, according to a joint statement released after the meeting.

Abe and Najib vowed to boost coordination in maritime security, with Abe backing Malaysia'€™s efforts in ensuring safety and security in the Strait of Malacca and the South China Sea, where Malaysia and some other Southeast Asian countries are locked in territorial disputes with China, according to the statement.

Najib thanked Abe for Japan'€™s assistance in providing further capacity building to Malaysia'€™s Maritime Enforcement Agency, the statement said.

Given Malaysia'€™s role as ASEAN chair this year, Abe '€œexpressed his full support'€ to Najib as the 10-nation bloc is lowering barriers to the flow of people, goods and money to launch a more integrated economic community by the end of the year.

On Tuesday, Najib is scheduled to take a ride on a shinkansen line from Tokyo to Sendai, northeastern Japan, for a 90-minute journey. China, France, Germany and South Korea are also reportedly keen to participate in the Malaysia-Singapore project.

Earlier this month, Najib and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong reaffirmed their countries'€™ commitment to making the project successful, but said their countries decided to push back an initial deadline of 2020 for completion of the 350-kilometer rail link due to its complexity.

The project, if completed, would reduce travel time between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to 90 minutes from about four hours by car.

In the wake of China'€™s building of artificial islands through massive land reclamation in contested waters in the South China Sea, Abe and Najib on Monday urged China and other claimant states to '€œsettle their maritime disputes and differences through peaceful means and in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law'€, according to the statement.

In a reflection of concern that the Chinese action may undermine freedom of navigation on and flights over the high seas, the leaders '€œreaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and freedom of navigation in and over-flight over the South China Sea'€, it said.

They called on ASEAN and China to achieve the '€œearly establishment'€ of an '€œeffective'€ code of conduct aimed at reducing territorial and maritime conflicts in the South China Sea.

China claims nearly the whole of the South China Sea, an international shipping route and an area believed to have rich energy reserves and fishing grounds. Parts of the contested waters are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Among other issues, Abe and Najib affirmed Japanese-Malaysian cooperation in the fight against terrorism, reform of the UN Security Council and negotiations for a 12-nation Pacific free trade initiative known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.