Japan Is An 'Indispensable Partner' In India's Transformation, Key Pillars Of Stable Indo-Pacific Region: PM Modi

Ahead of a bilateral meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that he sees Japan as an “indispensable partner” in India’s continuing transformation, asserting that New Delhi’s speed and scale combined with ease of doing business, attractive incentives, bold reforms and ambitious plans create unmatched opportunities for Japanese businesses.

India and Japan are key pillars of a stable and secure Indo-Pacific region and their partnership is for peace, stability and prosperity, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an op-ed published in a leading Japanese language newspaper.

Penned an op-ed on the vibrant relations between India and Japan, Prime Minister Modi, who is in Japan on a two-day visit to attend a summit of the Quad leaders, said on Twitter.

“Ours is a partnership for peace, stability and prosperity. I trace the journey of our special friendship which completes 70 glorious years. @Yomiuri_Online,” he said in a tweet.

Closer India-Japan cooperation is vital in the post-COVID world, Modi said.

“Our nations are firmly committed to democratic values. Together, we are key pillars of a stable and secure Indo-Pacific region. I am equally glad that we are working closely in various multilateral forums as well,” he said in another tweet.

“I have had the opportunity of regularly interacting with the Japanese people since my days as Gujarat CM,” Modi said.

Japan’s developmental strides have always been admirable, he said, adding that Japan is partnering with India in key sectors including infrastructure, technology, innovation, start-ups and more.

Prime Minister Modi, who is in Japan on a two-day visit to attend a summit of the Quad leaders at the invitation of his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida, penned an op-ed on the vibrant relations between India and Japan in the Yomiuri Shimbun.

Modi will have a bilateral meeting with Kishida on Tuesday, their second meeting in two months.
 

Japan an ‘indispensable partner'
 

In the article titled ‘India-Japan: A Partnership for Peace, Stability and Prosperity’, he said that in the last few years, India has embarked on a journey to build a strong foundation for the manufacturing sector, services, agriculture and digital technology infrastructure.

“I see Japan as an indispensable partner in India’s continuing transformation,” Modi said.

For Japan, India’s speed and scale combined with ease of doing business, attractive incentives, bold reforms and ambitious plans create unmatched opportunities, he said.

“We have also fostered a dynamic startup ecosystem in India, with over 100 unicorns. Japanese capital is already playing an important role in this effort. And there is potential for a great deal more,” according to Modi.

India and Japan have collaborations in a number of developmental projects, including the Indian government’s ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project.

“The iconic Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project symbolises Japan's extensive collaboration in some of the most important endeavours to build a New India,” Prime Minister Modi said.

The 508.17-kilometre long network will pass through three districts in Maharashtra (Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar) and eight districts in Gujarat (Valsad, Navsari, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Kheda, and Ahmedabad).

The total cost of the project is pegged at Rs 1.08 lakh crore and as per the shareholding pattern, the Government of India is to pay Rs 10,000 crore to the National High Speed Rail Corporation, while the two states involved, Gujarat and Maharashtra, are to pay Rs 5,000 crore each. The rest is to be paid by Japan through a loan at 0.1 per cent interest.

Japan, a key partner in India’s economic transformation

In the recent past, the India Japan relationship has transformed to a partnership of great substance and purpose. Japan's interest in India is increasing due to a variety of reasons including India's large and growing market and its resources, especially the human resources.

In New Delhi on Saturday, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra, at a media briefing on Prime Minister Modi's visit to Japan, said that Japan is among India’s most important partners.

“Modi has referred to the India-Japan relationship as being one of the most natural in the region. In the last few years, the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership have seen great momentum.

"The meeting (between Modi and Kishida) will be an opportunity to carry forward the high-level engagement between the two countries, as also to advance bilateral cooperation agenda," he had said.

He will attend the summit of the Quad leaders which is aimed at further bolstering cooperation among the member nations of the influential grouping and discussing developments in the strategic Indo-Pacific region.

Besides Modi, the Quad summit in Tokyo on May 24 will be attended by US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian prime minister-elect Anthony Albanese.

The Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprises India, the US, Japan and Australia. Modi will hold separate bilateral meetings with Biden, Kishida and Albanese on the sidelines of the summit.

He had hosted Kishida for the 14th India-Japan Annual Summit in March 2022. He said economic cooperation between India and Japan is an important aspect of their Special Strategic and Global Partnership.

Modi also said that he is looking forward to a bilateral meeting with newly-elected Australian Prime Minister Albanese during which the multifaceted cooperation between the two countries under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and regional and global issues of mutual interest will be discussed.

Noting that Japan is home to nearly 40,000 members of the Indian diaspora, who are an important anchor in India's relations with Japan, Modi said he looks forward to interacting with them.

(with inputs from PTI)