Arya News - Affirming their mutual commitment under the Japan-India Special Strategic and Global Partnership` both New Delhi and Tokyo said they welcomed the steady strengthening of defence cooperation between the two countries.
NEW DELHI – Just days ahead of the BRICS Summit in India, and just a day after China expressed strong displeasure over remilitarisation of Japan for the first time after World War II, New Delhi and Tokyo have signalled strong strategic and security, especially maritime security, arrangements between the two countries Raksha Mantri (RM) Rajnath Singh and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi held a bilateral meeting Thursday.
The joint press statement issued by the two leaders, though did not name China, signalled a strong intent to further defence maritime cooperation.
The two ministers expressed strong opposition to any unilateral actions that impede freedom and safety of navigation and overflight, as well as to any attempts to change the status-quo by force or coercion.
In a strong message, Koizumi said: “Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi visited India and agreed with PM Modi to strengthen Japan-India, a trust that shares strategic direction, Defence Cooperation plays an indispensable part in this partnership; however, Japan-India defence relations have not yet reached the level they should…The security environment in the Indo-Pacific is rapidly becoming more complex and uncertain. Under the leadership of our two leaders, I look forward to working with you to quickly elevate Japan-India relations to the level they should reach…”
Moreover, the two nations vowed to strengthen maritime security cooperation and signed the ‘Memorandum of Arrangement on Maritime Security Cooperation’ between the Ministry of Defence of Japan and Ministry of Defence of India.
“The Memorandum provides a framework for further advancing cooperation between the two countries in the field of maritime security. Specifically, it includes the strengthening of cooperation between the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force and the Indian Navy, including information sharing in the field of Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), as well as enhanced cooperation in areas such as Search and Rescue (SAR) and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR),” the joint statement said.
Another significant development during the talks has been that India will get the shipborne UNICORN integrated communications antenna system, as the first defence equipment transfer project between the two countries.
Affirming their mutual commitment under the “Japan-India Special Strategic and Global Partnership”, the two ministers “welcomed the steady strengthening of defence cooperation, including cooperation among the respective Ministries and the Services of the two countries that share strategic perspectives”, including sharing “assessments of the regional and international security environment… at a time of heightened global tensions.”
Deeming keeping Sea Lines of Communications protected as vital not only to Japan and India, but also to the region and the international community, the two countries underlined the significance of mutual visits by naval ships and units, joint exercises, personnel and Subject Matter Expert (SME) exchanges and logistical support including use of ports, maintenance and repair facilities.
The two countries have also decided to promote exchanges between their respective Special Operations Forces and pursuing cooperation with India’s integrated theatre commands.
RM Singh welcomed Japan’s recent review of its framework for the transfer of defence equipment and technology, and expressed his expectation that Japan would further contribute to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and the wider world. He particularly expressed his expectations for the further deepening of the defence and technology partnership between the two countries.
The two Ministers also affirmed their commitment to deepening the defence R&D cooperation between DRDO & ATLA in the field of state-of-the-art defence technologies. Both Ministers also confirmed their intention to convene a Defence Industry Forum.
The two ministers also welcomed the first trilateral naval PASSEX exercise involving Japan, India and Indonesia, which was conducted in February this year.