Takaichi, Modi Agree to Deepen Japan-India Strategic Cooperation

New Delhi, July 2 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, on Thursday affirmed their intentions to deepen the two countries’ strategic cooperation with the aim of achieving common goals such as realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific region. At the bilateral summit in New Delhi, the two leaders also agreed to work together on bolstering supply chains for critical goods and adopted a joint declaration calling for economic security cooperation. Takaichi, on a three-day visit to India from Wednesday, said in a joint press conference after the meeting that she will elevate Japan-India relations to a higher level, while Modi called for achieving the two countries’ shared ambition of global progress. They also announced documents on about 120 projects on cooperation between Japanese and Indian companies, including around 2 trillion yen of investments. Takaichi and Modi agreed to promote collaboration regarding defense equipment as part of the efforts to deepen strategic cooperation, and to hold a two-plus-two meeting of the two nations’ foreign and defense ministers by the end of the year. In the field of economic security, the two countries decided to launch a bilateral dialogue on strengthening India’s oil stockpiling system. Japan will support India’s membership in the International Energy Agency. Tokyo will also help India establish some 1,000 biogas plants to produce energy from cattle feces. Takaichi and Modi also agreed that Japan and India will work together on advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, and published a joint statement on cooperation in the AI sector. The Japanese leader’s visit to India is part of so-called shuttle diplomacy, or reciprocal visits by the two countries’ leaders. It is her first trip to the South Asian nation since she took office last October. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]