Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar pledged Thursday to boost cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, amid China's increasing military and economic clout.
During their meeting in Tokyo, Kamikawa, who in September 2023 became Japan's first female foreign minister for around two decades, and Jaishankar also agreed that the two countries will deepen bilateral relations in the economic and security fields.
"We affirmed Japan and India will further step up collaboration to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific," Kamikawa said at a joint press event after the talks, referring to a vision advocated by Tokyo in a veiled bid to counter China's assertiveness in the region.
Kamikawa underscored Tokyo and New Delhi "share fundamental values including democracy and the rule of law," saying they will "proactively promote" defense equipment transfers and technical cooperation in outer space and cybersecurity.
The two nations have strengthened security cooperation in recent years through bilateral military drills alongside being part of the four-way dialogue framework known as the Quad, involving the United States and Australia. The Quad is considered to be a counterweight to China.
Tokyo also sees its ties with New Delhi as a key for ramping up relations with emerging and developing economies collectively dubbed the Global South, among which India is widely viewed as a leading power.
India, meanwhile, is part of the BRICS forum along with nations such as Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa. It has also traditionally maintained amicable ties with Moscow even after the launch of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
In tandem with other Group of Seven members and like-minded countries, Japan has imposed economic sanctions on Russia, but India has refrained from joining the punitive measures as it is dependent on Moscow for military and energy supplies.
The two foreign ministers met at a time when Tokyo and New Delhi are in the process of arranging a visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Japan by the end of this year, sources close to the matter said.
Modi visited Japan to participate in the G7 summit in Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's home constituency of Hiroshima in May as a guest. India was the chair of the Group of 20 in 2023.
