The India-Japan partnership enhances strategic stability in the Indo-Pacific at a time when ensuring the region remains free and open has become a more complex challenge, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday.
India and Japan have a “larger responsibility” towards the Indo-Pacific as major democracies and maritime nations, and must bolster supply chains and invest in artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and critical minerals, he said at the India-Japan Indo-Pacific Forum organised by Delhi Policy Group and Japan Institute of International Affairs.
Jaishankar’s remarks came against the backdrop of sharp strains in India-US relations over the trade and tariff policies of the Trump administration, and uncertainty over the holding of the Quad Summit, which brings together the leaders of India, Australia, Japan, and the US.
The India-Japan partnership has deepened in the past few decades and “serves to enhance strategic stability in the Indo-Pacific and contribute to the economic one at a global level”, Jaishankar said. “Maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific is a stronger imperative but also a more complex challenge,” he added.
“Looking ahead, the India-Japan partnership must focus on leveraging our strengths, bolstering our supply chains and investing in artificial intelligence, semiconductors, critical minerals, clean energy, and space,” he said.
Pointing to the larger responsibility towards the Indo-Pacific of the two countries, he said the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative, where Japan co-leads the pillar for maritime trade, transport, and connectivity, has the potential to advance contributions.
The India-Japan relationship also responds to the changing global scenario, as reflected in the deepening of cooperation in multiple domains. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent phone conversation with his Japanese counterpart Sanae Takaichi, as soon as she assumed office, is testimony to the priority that both sides attach to their relationship.
Modi’s visit to Japan in August led to a joint vision for ties over the next decade, with eight priority pillars and an investment target of 10 trillion yen in the next decade serving as “useful metrics to assess our ambition”, he said. The Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation is noteworthy for “raising the level of our aspirations in defence and security”, he added.
Jaishankar also emphasised new initiatives such as the Next Generation Mobility Partnership, Economic Security Initiative, Joint Crediting Mechanism, and Joint Declaration on Clean Hydrogen and Ammonia, and an MoU in the field of mineral resources as examples of an evolving contemporary agenda.
People-to-people exchanges will get a boost with the action plan for human resource cooperation and exchange. “Together, all these initiatives reaffirm the strategic and comprehensive nature of our ties,” he said.
