Prime Ministers Shigeru Ishiba and Narendra Modi at the Japanese Prime Minister's Official Residence, August 29. (©Prime Minister's Office of Japan)
At a summit held in Tokyo on August 29, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled an ambitious ten-year blueprint to enhance bilateral ties to what the latter described as "a golden chapter."
The meeting, encompassing sweeping commitments across multiple sectors, marked Modi's first standalone visit to Japan in seven years and his first trip to the country since the 2023 G7 Hiroshima Summit.
Modi's visit also comes amid escalating United States-China trade tensions and follows President Donald Trump's imposition of 50% reciprocal tariffs on India.
Renewed Security Declaration
In his statement on Friday, Ishiba said Japan and India "need to take advantage of each other's strengths, to bring solutions to our challenges and to help each other." Modi, for his part, referred to the cooperation between the two major democracies and economic powers as "strategic and smart."
The two leaders issued a joint statement reaffirming opposition to any unilateral attempts to alter the status quo in the East and South China Seas, a clear reference to China's growing maritime assertiveness.
They also pledged cooperation within the Japan-India special relationship and the broader Quad framework, while vowing coordinated responses to the proliferation of North Korea's nuclear and missile technologies.
For the first time in 17 years, the 2008 Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation was revised. The updated accord outlines plans for joint defense equipment development, deeper collaboration in cyber, space, and artificial intelligence, as well as expanded joint training between the Japan Self-Defense Forces and India's armed forces.
Economic Security Initiative
The economic dimension of the summit was equally far-reaching. Japan pledged to mobilize ¥10 trillion JPY (approximately $68 billion USD) in private sector investment in India over the next decade.
The two governments announced the launch of an economic security initiative, creating a joint consultative framework that brings together public and private sectors in critical domains including semiconductors, rare earth minerals, pharmaceuticals, and information and communications technology.
Designed to bolster supply chain resilience, the move also reflects a shared resolve to safeguard strategic technologies amid mounting global competition.
Expanding Human Exchanges
People-to-people exchange was another pillar of the discussions. Both sides have committed to facilitating the movement of more than 500,000 people between the two countries over the next five years, with particular emphasis on engineers and researchers.
The project aims to create a virtuous cycle in which Indian professionals gain cutting-edge skills in Japan and bring that expertise back to contribute to India's development. It is also intended to help address Japan's acute labor shortages.
In addition, the two leaders announced the "Japan-India AI Cooperation Initiative," a collaborative framework designed to advance research, education, and governance in artificial intelligence
Navigating Mutual Challenges
At a press briefing later that evening at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, India's Foreign Secretary and Ambassador to Japan elaborated on the outcomes of the earlier summit.
Particular attention was paid to the potential impact of ongoing trade tensions and the escalating US-China rivalry on the Indo-Pacific security environment.
When asked whether these developments might affect India's security relationships, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that the "joint declaration aims to institutionalize ongoing defense cooperation and shared goals in maritime security, including defense industrial collaboration and coordinated responses to traditional and non-traditional threats."
He added that the shifting global landscape "essentially creates the ground and the logic for closer cooperation between India and Japan, particularly in business, economic ties, and supply chain resilience."
Forging the Path Forward
On August 30, the two leaders are set to travel together by Shinkansen to Japan's Tohoku region. There, they will visit a Tokyo Electron facility in Sendai, a leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer.
Tokyo Electron recently established its first development hub in Bengaluru, highlighting the growing technological interdependence between the two states.
After his two-day stop in Japan, Modi is scheduled to visit China between August 31 and September 1 for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
Reports indicate that Modi will skip Xi Jinping's Victory Day parade on September 3, an event expected to be attended by the heads of Russia and North Korea.
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Author: Kenji Yoshida
