Latest revision as of 20:35, 11 July 2026

[edit] Ancient links

[edit] Kichijōji and other religious links

August 16, 2018: The Indian Express

A town near Tokyo has its origin from Lakshmi temple. Kichijōji means Lakshmi temple in Japanese.
From: August 16, 2018: The Indian Express

Takayuki Kitagawa, Consul General of Japan said that many might think Japan and India are different, though they are not. He cited the temples in Japan that are dedicated to Hindu gods as examples.

A town near Tokyo, Japan — Kichijōji — has been named after Hindu Goddess Lakshmi. The news was confirmed by Takayuki Kitagawa, Consul General of Japan, on Sunday according to a report in Indo-Asian News Service.

“You will be surprised to know that the town near Tokyo has its origin from Lakshmi temple. Kichijōji means Lakshmi temple in Japanese,” Kitagawa told students and faculty of Dayanand Sagar while speaking on their graduation day. Commenting upon the influence India had on the Japanese culture and society, Kitagawa said many think Japan and India are different, though they are not. He cited the temples in Japan that are dedicated to Hindu gods as examples.

“There are many more Hindu gods who are revered in the Land of the Rising Sun. For ages, we have been praying to Hindu gods,” said the diplomat. The audience were bowled over when he began his speech in Kannada.

[edit] Economic relations

[edit] 2013-16

Aftab Seth , Rising Suns “ India Today” 28/11/2016

Bilateral trade ,India Today , November 28,2016

Downfall in trade India Today

Speaking at Japan's oldest university, Keio, in 1916, Rabindranath Tagore said the "whole of eastern Asia, from Burma to Japan, was united with India in the closest ties that can exist between nations". Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recently concluded visit to Japan is to be seen in this historical context and in the wake of a series of prime ministerial visits which, since 2005, have become an annual feature. The close economic cooperation between the two countries, especially the strategic and military dimension, dates to the historic visit of then Japanese PM Yoshiro Mori to India in August 2000, at the invitation of his counterpart here, A.B. Vajpayee. A 'Global partnership for India and Japan for the 21st century' was announced. Joint naval and coast guard exercises and annual meetings between the defence and foreign ministries and uniformed military officers of the two countries became a regular affair after this date. The partnership was elevated to a 'strategic and global partnership' in December 2006, when then PM Manmohan Singh signed an agreement to this effect in Tokyo with PM Shinzo Abe.

For the last five or more years, India and Japan have been in talks about civil nuclear cooperation. During Abe's visit to India in December 2015, the outlines of a civil nuclear agreement were finally agreed to, as also an agreement for the protection of classified military information and defence-related technologies. The agreement, signed by Abe and Modi in Tokyo on November 11, is a landmark for Japan, even though it has similar treaties for civil nuclear cooperation with 13 other countries. The significant point is this-it is the first such agreement Japan has signed with a country which is not a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Japan is the only country in the world to have suffered atomic bombing. So there are deep concerns about nuclear matters and cooperation with a country which is not a signatory to the NPT. There is, in addition, a strong anti-nuclear movement in Japan comprising influential and vocal voices. The Abe government has overcome the domestic opposition with considerable effort by following the example of eight other nations, including France, the US and Russia, which have similar civil-nuclear agreements with India.

India's pledge to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) in 2008, to maintain its moratorium on further testing, provides Japan the domestic legitimacy it seeks in working with India. In the event of a breach, Japan has the right to sever the agreement with a year's notice. India is also committed to refraining from enriching uranium to 20 per cent or higher without Japan's written consent. Owing to supply chains with companies in Japan, France and the US, such as Toshiba, Hitachi, GE, Areva and Westinghouse, the recently-concluded agreement with Japan is most essential for the practical transfer of technology to India. The pact with India comes in the context of a recent decision by Vietnam to submit a resolution to cancel its proposed nuclear power station with Japan, owing to continuing safety concerns with the stricken nuclear power plant in Fukushima, which was struck by a triple tragedy on March 11, 2011. In any event, the agreement that Abe has pushed through with India represents a recognition of the reliability of India as a partner; it is also an expression of confidence and trust in India by Japan. This makes the pact truly unique. Japan has promised to continue its efforts to get India into the NSG and other related organisations, underlining its commitment to India's development of nuclear power. Business circles in Japan are optimistic that the agreement will lead to enhanced exports of equipment and machinery to India.

Other features of the Modi visit also bear mention. The first is the manner in which Pakistan has been singled out, in the paragraph on terrorism and cross-border support to terrorist activities. There is a clear reference to the need for Pakistan to pursue the culprits sheltering there who are responsible for the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai in 2008. India, it will be recalled, had been unable to get such an endorsement at the BRICS summit in Goa last month. The endorsement is symbolic of the distance Japan is willing to go in expressing its support to India unequivocally, on a matter which is of critical importance to India's security. The India and Japan Vision 2025 statement, announced on December 12, 2015, was mentioned again. This is significant because it underlines the commitment of both countries to democracy, an open society and firm opposition to all forms of terrorism. As was the case during Abe's 2015 visit, this time again there is a mention of the dangers posed by North Korea's nuclear and missile policies and its abduction of Japanese nationals. This is a most emotive issue in Japan and India's support on an issue of vital strategic importance to Japan is much appreciated here. In both 2015 and 2016, there is a clear reference to the South China Sea and the need for all countries to respect the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Like so much else in the Japan-India strategic equation, the aggressive postures of China in the South China Sea, the Senkaku islands and in the Indian Ocean region, lie at the centre of much of the dialogue and indeed the conclusions of the two countries. The sale of US-2 (utility seaplane) amphibian aircraft was mentioned in the joint statement as a vital aspect of defence cooperation and it appears that further discussions on this will happen between the two defence establishments. An agreement, had it taken place, would have represented the first major export of defence material by Japan, after the changes made in Japanese laws governing such exports in the summer of 2015. Japanese assistance for Skill India and Make in India finds a place again in the 2016 document. Japan will continue to assist with the development of Japan industrial townships, promotion of tourism and in encouraging Indian students to spend time there.

During his 2007 visit to India, Prime Minister Abe outlined his vision of a 'Confluence of Two Seas' in Parliament. He stressed the indivisibility of the security of the Indian and Pacific Ocean regions. Earlier, in July 2005, then PM Manmohan Singh had reached a far-reaching defence agreement with then US president George W. Bush. This agreement, in the context of the 50-year security agreement that already existed between Japan and the US, provided the necessary legal framework for defence cooperation. It enabled trilateral naval exercises between Japan, India and the US off Okinawa, in April 2007. In September that year, the three countries were joined by the navies of Australia and Singapore. For a few years after these trilateral manifestations of cooperation, there was a gap in such activities (some analysts say this diffidence was caused by concern about China's views on Japan-India cooperation). With the advent to power of PM Modi in 2014, however, bilateral and trilateral exercises were resumed; in October 2015, Japan, the US and India held the Malabar naval exercises in the Indian Ocean. It may be noted that this enhanced level of strategic cooperation was specified in September 2014 during Modi's visit to Japan, when he and PM Abe raised the global and strategic partnership to a 'special' global and strategic partnership.

In December 2015, when they met in Delhi, the two leaders also agreed to cooperate in the development of connectivity between India and the ASEAN regions, where both India and Japan have important economic and strategic interests. Similarly, Japanese ODA (official development assistance) for the development of the Andaman Islands assumes strategic importance since the most remote of our islands is only 90 km from Sumatra, Indonesia. Progress on both the development of our Northeast region with road and rail links to Myanmar and beyond and the development of the Andaman islands was reviewed by the two sides at the November 11 meet in Tokyo. This cooperation in the Northeast with Myanmar as a focal point of entry to ASEAN needs to be viewed in the context of Aung San Suu Kyi's visit to Japan last week and the pledge given by Abe to grant $7.73 billion over five years to develop the country's infrastructure. PM Modi and Abe, in their recent talks in Tokyo on November 11 and 12, would doubtless have compared notes on Myanmar and ASEAN, a region where both Japan and India have deep strategic and economic interests and where both countries are seen as a counterweight to China's preponderance.

The successfully concluded Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train link assumes added significance in this Indo-Pacific partnership. These are modern manifestations of a history of shared values going back 15 centuries. They augur a bright future for our friendship.

The author, a former Indian ambassador to Tokyo, is chairman of the Japan-India Partnership Forum

[edit] The 2020s, till 2026

Divya A, July 1, 2026: The Indian Express

According to government statistics, around 1,400 Japanese companies operate in India, with nearly half of them in the manufacturing sector.

Meanwhile, bilateral trade reached $27.5 billion in 2025-26, with Japanese investment in India ‌going up to $3.2 billion between April and December 2025.

Japan is among India’s largest investors, backing major infrastructure projects including a high-speed rail corridor between Mumbai ‌and Ahmedabad. Japanese firms have also increased investments in Indian companies, including a recent $1.6 billion deal for a 20% stake in Yes Bank.

“The summit will provide an opportunity for both sides to review and strengthen the full spectrum of bilateral cooperation as well as exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest,” the Ministry of External Affairs said last week, while announcing Takaichi’s visit. The visit is focused on boosting trade, investment and strategic cooperation between the two Asian partners, said the Japanese foreign ministry.

India-Japan relations provide a strategic and economic counterweight to China’s growing dominance in the region. The leaders will also discuss security cooperation and efforts to advance a free and open ‌Indo-Pacific. India and Japan are members of the Quad grouping alongside the United States and Australia, and have steadily expanded defence and strategic collaboration in recent years.

Modi and Takaichi had met earlier this month on the sidelines of the 52nd G7 Summit in France and discussed enhancing economic cooperation with a focus on trade and investment.

Regional affinities

The India-Japan ties are based on cooperation across eight key pillars — economy, economic security, mobility, environment, technology and innovation, healthcare, people-to-people exchanges, and state-prefecture engagement.

The state-prefecture cooperation has expanded to add even greater depth and diversity to the bilateral relationship. In 2025-26, the Chief Ministers of Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh made official visits to Japan and engaged with their counterparts, while governors of several Japanese prefectures have also visited India. This has culminated in the launch of the India-Japan Governors Network in February 2026.

Japan is the only country with which India has a dedicated institutional mechanism for the development of the North-East – the India-Japan Act East Forum. India and Japan are partnering on connectivity and development in Northeast India, including projects in infrastructure, urban renewal, energy, agriculture, tourism and skills.

The North-East fits into Japan’s vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific as a bridge connecting South Asia with Southeast Asia. During his speech at the Kizuna Conclave in Shillong in February 2026, Japanese State Minister for Foreign Affairs Iwao Horii said, “Northeast India is a region where India’s ‘Act East’ policy, promoted by Prime Minister Modi, and Japan’s vision of a ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’ are put into practice.”

Guwahati was initially among the possible venues considered for the visit, but was later ruled out due to “logistical issues”. Still, Japanese Ambassador Ono Keiichi, called up Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, reaffirming that the two sides will further strengthen collaboration across key sectors like electronics, semiconductor and entrepreneurship, Sarma said.

Several incoming and outgoing high-level visits between the North-East and Japan have taken place since 2025. In May 2025, the then-Speaker of the House of Representatives, Fukushiro Nukaga, visited Assam and met the Chief Minister and Governor. He also visited IIT Guwahati and the Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test Facility.

A delegation from Kagawa Prefecture, led by Vice Governor Oyama Satoshi, visited Manipur in December 2025. The delegation held meetings with several government officials, including the Chief Secretary, and explored human resource collaboration in areas such as nursing care and hospitality. The Chief Minister of Meghalaya visited Japan in April this year, and an MoU was signed for the skill training and employment of 5,000 youth from the state. The CMs of Nagaland and Assam have also been on official visits to Japan.

Solid foundation, a stable future

India and Japan share a long-standing friendship rooted in centuries of cultural and civilisational exchange, spiritual affinity, and shared values of freedom, democracy and respect for the rule of law. However, ties have gained specific focus and traction over the last decade when the relationship was elevated to a Special Strategic and Global Partnership in 2014.

The relationship was launched as a Global Partnership in 2000, upgraded to a Strategic and Global Partnership in 2006, and elevated to a Special Strategic and Global Partnership in 2014 during the Summit between PM Modi and former PM Shinzo Abe.

As the two countries approach the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2027, cooperation continues to deepen across a wide range of sectors, including trade and investment, economic security, defence and security, science and technology, culture, and people-to-people ties. The bilateral framework now comprises over 70 dialogue mechanisms.

The relationship is also marked by frequent high-level political engagement. Apart from annual summits, high-level exchanges and meetings regularly take place at the levels of Foreign Minister, Defence Minister, NSA, Foreign Secretary/Vice Minister, among others.

Key mechanisms include the 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministers’ Meeting, Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue, Foreign Secretary–Vice Minister Dialogue, Defence Ministerial Meeting, Economic Security Dialogue, and the Act East Forum.

Critical areas of collaboration

As the world battles issues such as supply chain disruptions and shortage of critical minerals, economic security and technology have emerged as key pillars of the relationship. During the 1st Economic Security Dialogue held in Tokyo in November 2024, the two sides identified five sectors as priority sectors for strategic collaboration: semiconductors, critical minerals, pharmaceuticals, clean energy and information and communication technology.

India and Japan entered into a Memorandum of Cooperation in the Field of Mineral Resources in August 2025, with the first joint working group under the MoC held virtually in April this year. A Memorandum of Cooperation on Semiconductor Supply Chains was signed in July 2023.

The Japan-India AI Cooperation Initiative was launched in 2025. Towards this end, the 1st India-Japan Strategic AI Dialogue was held this year.

High-level defence exchanges have also been regular. The Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation was signed during the Annual Summit in August 2025.

Japan participates in several bilateral exercises with India, including JAIMEX, Dharma Guardian, Veer Guardian, and bilateral Coast Guard Drills, as well as in multilateral exercises such as MALABAR and MILAN. Defence equipment and technology cooperation has also progressed, including the signing of a Memorandum of Implementation for the transfer of the UNICORN Mast in November 2024.

[edit] Defence relations

[edit] 2020: reciprocal military logistics pact

September 11, 2020: The Times of India

Defence secretary Ajay Kumar and Japanese ambassador Suzuki Satoshi signed the agreement on “reciprocal provision of supplies and services” between the Indian armed forces and the Japanese self-defence forces.

PM Modi and his counterpart Shinzo Abe agreed that the pact, the negotiations for which had kicked off in October 2018, will “further enhance the depth of defence cooperation” between India and Japan and “contribute to peace and security in the Indo-Pacific”. The 10-year agreement will be automatically extended every decade unless once side decides to terminate it.

The defence ministry, in turn, said the agreement establishes the enabling framework for closer cooperation between the two armed forces in reciprocal provision of supplies and services while engaged in bilateral training activities, UN peacekeeping operations, humanitarian international relief and other mutually agreed activities.

[edit] YEAR-WISE DEVELOPMENTS

[edit] Shinzo Abe: 2012-20

[edit] A

Indrani Bagchi, August 29, 2020: The Times of India

Modi, Abe took bilateral relations to new heights

PM Shinzo Abe leaves behind a unique legacy — making India-Japan ties perhaps the closest in the world, an achievement driven largely by Abe and Narendra Modi. Responding to Abe’s resignation, PM Modi tweeted, “Pained to hear about your ill health, my dear friend @AbeShinzo. In recent years, with your wise leadership and personal commitment, the India-Japan partnership has become deeper and stronger than ever before.”

It could be a while before Abe’s successor comes, but whether it is finance minister Taro Aso, defence minister Taro Kono or chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga, there is now a set momentum in India-Japan relations. And it’s largely because of Abe. Modi struck up a close personal relationship with Abe even before becoming PM. As CM of Gujarat, the first G-8 (then) country Modi visited was Japan. When he took office in 2014, Modi pushed the idea of the high speed train network, beginning from Ahmedabad to Mumbai, a project likely to take off by 2023.

Former PM Manmohan Singh and Abe too enjoyed a close bond. In fact, it was during his last summit with Singh in 2013 that Japan began its investments in India’s northeast, the first nation to do so, in a sign that the two countries were cementing their global outlook in the face of a rising China. Modi may still have his next virtual summit with Abe in September. India and Japan are to sign the Acquisition and Cross Servicing Agreement, for logistics sharing, which would make the Quad countries (US, India, Japan, Australia) bound by a shared strategic outlook. It will be a fitting send-off to Abe — the father of the Indo-Pacific.

In his first term, Modi had deployed a single points person in the PMO to facilitate Japanese investment. Japan was also the only country to post a serving official in India’s commerce ministry. Abe used the India ties to turn Japan around by opening up defence exports and conducting military drills. India will need to work much harder to keep its ties going in the post-Abe Japan in face of an aggressive China.

[edit] 2019

[edit] Japan PM's visit postponed because of Guwahati situation

Dec 13, 2019 Business Standard

India announced that the annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, which was scheduled to be held in Guwahati, has been postponed.

Abe was scheduled to arrive in Guwahati on Sunday on a three-day India visit to hold summit talks with Modi.

[edit] 2026:PM Sanae Takaichi's visit

July 3, 2026: The Times of India

New Delhi : Japan PM Sanae Takaichi’s visit to India for the India-Japan summit heralded what her counterpart Narendra Modi described as a new chapter in their special strategic and global partnership, with both sides signing several agreements to boost cooperation in AI, energy security, mineral exploration and defence, reports Sachin Parashar.


The two also adopted a roadmap for economic security to boost supply chain resilience in strategic sectors like semiconductors and critical minerals, while agreeing to review the 15-year-old India-Japan CEPA to enhance bilateral trade. Building upon his remarks at G7 about the sanctity of mutual trust amid global turmoil, Modi said India-Japan ties exemplified a relationship based on unbreakable reciprocal trust.

[edit] After Shinzo Abe, you are my elder brother, Sanae tells PM; Modi calls her ‘younger sister’

I considered Shinzo Abe, who treated you as a friend, to be my elder brother. Now that he is not with us, I consider you to be my elder brother,” visiting Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi is learnt to have told PM Modi.The remark, made during the “restricted meeting” led Modi to say he also thought of Takaichi as his younger sister. The warmth was not surprising, given that Takaichi considers Abe as her mentor. Abe, who was widely recognised to be a friend of India, is credited with pioneering the concept of Quad, the informal grouping of India, Japan, the US and Australia, during his famous 2007 address to the Indian Parliament. After taking over as PM, Modi developed a good rapport with Abe. He visited Tokyo to attend Abe’s funeral when he was assassinated in 2022. Paying tribute to “My Friend, Abe San”, Modi had said, “In the passing away of Mr Abe, Japan and the world have lost agreat visionary. And I have lost a dear friend.” 
TNN

[edit] India, Japan ink deal to boost naval stealth capabilities

In all, Japan PM Sanae Takaichi's visit to India yielded 16 outcomes. Among the highlights was an announcement by Modi that India and Japan had signed their first co-development project for the Unified Complex Radio Antenna (UNICORN), which, the PM said, will open a new chapter in the defence technology partnership.

“Now, we will together develop such defence technologies that will strengthen regional peace, maritime security, and rule-based order,” Modi said, referring to the UNICORN partnership that is expected to boost naval stealth capabilities. The announcement follows Japan’s relaxation under Takaichi of self-imposed restrictions on defence exports.


During the joint press statement, Modi addressed Takaichi as his ‘choti behen’ (younger sister), and the Japanese PM reciprocated by saying both of them were on the same page and would look to strengthen this brothersister relationship. 
On economic security, which dominated the summit agenda, the leaders reiterated in a joint statement their grave concerns over the use of “economic coercion and non-market poli cies and practices, including arbitrary export restrictions that may lead to supply chain disruptions, particularly in critical minerals and critical industrial sectors, and price manipulation”. 


Amid global concerns over China’s dominance of the critical minerals sector, Modi and Takaichi underscored the importance of diversified, resilient and reliable global supply chains, a fair competitive global environment, and the need to avoid reliance on any one country. Foreign secretary Vikram Misri later said the leaders also discussed the need to maintain strategic autonomy and resilience.


The meeting also saw Modi and Takaichi agree to make the India-Japan CEPA more “forward-looking” to ramp up the modest bilateral trade volume of about $27.5 billion. Modi said the India-Japan investment partnership is steadily growing and that the more than 100 business agreements signed in the past year will bring $10 billion in Japanese investment to India. 


“Our goal is clear: to attract 10 trillion yen in investment from Japan to India and to double the number of Japanese companies in India over the next 10 years,” Modi said, adding that continuous reforms in India have improved the ease of doing business and Japanese companies can take advantage of this. 


Apart from joint declarations on economic security and energy resilience, the two sides also issued a joint statement on cooperationin AI. 


Reiterating the significance of a free, prosperous and rules-based Indo-Pacific, Modi said the technology partnership would serve as the strongest pillar of India-Japan collaboration. 


Modi said both sides had also prepared the India-Japan Next Generation Mobility Partnership Framework.