The second India-Japan 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting was held in Tokyo on September 8, 2022.

Both countries in the joint statement reiterates their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, a rules-based global order that respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity and the peaceful resolution of disputes among countries.

Bilateral priorities such as the India-Japan Industrial Competitive Partnership, the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative and cooperation in clean energy are expected to show faster results as India and Japan gear up to assume the presidency of the G-20 and the G-7, respectively.

Deepening defence exchanges, augmenting maritime cooperation including Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), and boosting defence equipment and technological cooperation were areas covered;covering areas such as Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) and Robotics, where Japan has considerable strengths. Another area of potential cooperation is in the manufacturing of drones.

     There was also  agreement to launch the Joint Service Staff talks between the Japan Joint Staff and the Indian Integrated Defence Staff.

Both countries already had  existing bilateral and multilateral exercises including “Dharma Guardian” (ground forces), “JIMEX” and “Malabar” (navies), and, an earlier decision was taken  to conduct the inaugural India-Japan fighter exercise between the two air forces.

The ministers also welcomed the participation of Japan, for the first time, in the “MILAN” multilateral naval exercise organised by the Indian Navy. Interestingly, MILAN 2022 witnessed the first-ever participation by not just Japan but all the Quad nations, as well as France and South Korea.

            The recently held space and cyber dialogues have also pushed bilateral cooperation into newer realms with a defence and security orientation.

           Already both countries had Agreement Concerning Reciprocal Provision of Supplies and Services (ACSA) between the Self-Defence Forces of Japan and the armed forces of India signed in 2020 has already been operationalised earlier this year. This paves the way for deeper cooperation between the two militaries. addition to conventional issues, Jaishankar said the two are working on cyber security, 5G deployment, and critical and strategic minerals, which were all part of the Dialogue.

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INDO-JAPAN RELATIONS

Japan and India signed a peace treaty and established diplomatic relations on 28th April, 1952. This treaty was one of the first peace treaties Japan signed after World War II. Their relationship has gone beyond economics to enter the sphere of strategic cooperation.

There is synergy between the two in issues of bilateral regional and global importance; convergence on strategic matters; and its significance is growing from the common outlook on issues of peace, security and stability of the Indo-Pacific Region and their commitment to multilateralism.

Ever since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have enjoyed cordial relations. Annual Summits between the Prime Ministers commencing 2006 when both sides established ‘Strategic and Global Partnership’.in 2014 upgraded bilateral relations to ‘Special Strategic and Global Partnership’

• India decided to introduce the Shinkansen system in December 2015, when Prime Minister Abe visited India. The Japan’s Shinkansen system is in a highest class of High-Speed Railway systems around the world in terms of its safety and accuracy
• Japan’s resistance to recognising India as a nuclear power, still the two nations finally decided to sign the civil nuclear pact in 2016.
• In the Indo–Pacific region as well and Japan joining as the third partner in the Malabar exercises, along with India and the US, highlights the strong bonding.
• The Japan-India Digital Partnership launched in October 2018 between the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. Under the partnership, Japan and India agreed to establish a startup hub in Bengaluru, and to cooperate in cybersecurity and the dissemination of next-generation networks
• In November 2019, Japan and India held their first “2 plus 2” meeting of foreign and defense ministers. 
•  Undertaking joint projects in India’s Northeast and wider South Asia to the revival of Quad in 2017 and joint connectivity projects such as the Asia Africa Growth Corridor.
• In 2020 India and Japan concluded their Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) simplify the processes involved in using each other’s facilities. The India-Japan ACSA would provide the two militaries with access to each other’s military facilities for repair and replenishment of provisions as well as overall improve the scope and sophistication of military-to-military cooperation
• India has been the largest recipient of Japanese ODA Loan for the past decades. Delhi Metro is one of the most successful examples of Japanese cooperation through the utilization of ODA. Japan continues to cooperate in supporting strategic connectivity linking South Asia to Southeast Asia through the synergy between ”Act East” policy and ”Partnership for Quality Infrastructure.”