Jaishankar, Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi discuss ties
The meeting provided an opportunity to review progress in the bilateral special strategic and global partnership
India and Japan on Thursday emphasised the role of their bilateral partnership in ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific and discussed ways to deepen their cooperation on defence equipment.
These issues figured in the 15th India-Japan foreign ministers’ strategic dialogue between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi. The meeting provided an opportunity to review progress in the bilateral special strategic and global partnership.
The ministers exchanged views on regional and global issues and emphasised the “crucial role of the strong and enduring partnership between India and Japan in ensuring a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region that is inclusive and rules-based”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
They expressed satisfaction at the strengthening defence and security cooperation, including regular exercises and staff talks between all three services. “In this context, they discussed the way forward to deepen defence equipment and technology cooperation,” the statement said.
The discussions between Jaishankar and Hayashi covered a range of bilateral, regional and global issues. They also emphasised the importance of achieving the target of Japanese investments in India worth five trillion yen during 2022-27. In this context, they explored potential areas of collaboration in critical and emerging technologies, including semiconductors, resilient supply chains, and digital public infrastructure.
Jaishankar and Hayashi also discussed cooperation within multilateral and plurilateral frameworks, including the Quad. They agreed on the need for early reforms of the UN Security Council and exchanged views on their respective G20 and G7 presidencies.
In the context of 2023 being observed as the year of India-Japan tourism exchanges with the theme of “Connecting Himalayas with Mount Fuji”, the ministers acknowledged the importance of people-to-people exchanges. They also discussed ways to promote the movement of skilled human resources from India to Japan.
Japan is looking to hire thousands of skilled Indian professionals in specialised sectors, especially nurses, under its Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) programme.
“The India-Japan foreign ministers’ strategic dialogue reaffirmed the commitment of both sides to strengthen their special strategic and global partnership,” the statement said, adding that the meeting deepened bilateral cooperation and set the stage for enhanced collaboration on regional and global issues.
During a visit to India in March, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida unveiled a new plan for a free and open Indo-Pacific that envisaged India as an “indispensable partner” for preventing coercion and upholding a rules-based order.
While delivering tghe Sapru House Lecture, Kishida laid out Japan’s “New plan for a free and open Indo-Pacific – Together with India as an indispensable partner”. The address built on the historic speech by late former premier Shinzo Abe in India’s Parliament in 2007, which spoke of India and Japan nurturing the coupling of the Indian and Pacific Oceans to ensure freedom and prosperity.