India and Japan share a 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership'
Cooperation in the spheres of defence and security was on top of the agenda at the 3rd India-Japan 2+2 Dialogue held in New Delhi on Tuesday (August 20, 2024) as both sides discussed contemporary priorities and the challenges facing them.
 
A key point of discussion was the early transfer of Japan's Unified Complex Radio Antenna (UNICORN) and related technologies to India. The talks also focused on accelerating future cooperation in defence equipment and technology.
 
In another significant development, the ministers shared the intention to revise and update the 2008 Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation between India and Japan to reflect contemporary priorities and be responsive to contemporary security challenges facing them.
 
At the 2+2 dialogue, India was represented by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Japan was represented by Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko and Defence Minister Minoru Kihara.
 
According to the joint statement issued after the meeting, the ministers noted with pleasure the progress made since their last meeting in September 2022 to promote cooperation on cross-cutting security issues through the architecture of multilayered dialogues between the two countries.
 
They welcomed the possibilities to further enhance the bilateral security and defence cooperation following the National Security Strategy of Japan issued in December 2022 and recognized such cooperation as an important pillar of the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership.
 
The Ministers expressed their commitment to continuing bilateral and multilateral defence exercises including "Dharma Guardian”, JIMEX and "Malabar.” They also highlighted their cooperation in Quad and reaffirmed their commitment to advance it further based on the discussion at the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Tokyo on July 29, 2024.
 
During the meeting, the Ministers unequivocally condemned terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism, and called for bringing the perpetrators of 26/11 Mumbai, Pathankot, and other attacks to justice.
 
Vision for Free and Open Indo-Pacific 
At the 2+2 Dialogue, the Ministers highlighted their common strategic vision towards a free and open Indo-Pacific, that is inclusive, peaceful, prosperous and resilient, as part of the rules-based international order. The Ministers reiterated their strong support for ASEAN’s unity and centrality and their full support for the "ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP)” which upholds the principles such as openness, transparency, inclusivity, a rules-based framework and respect for international law, the joint statement said.
 
Meeting the visiting Japanese Ministers who called on him in New Delhi on Monday (August 19, 2024), Prime Minister Modi highlighted that the India-Japan partnership plays a crucial role in promoting peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. According to the MEA, PM Modi also underscored the importance of holding the 2+2 Dialogue in the context of increasingly complex regional and global order, and deepening ties between India and Japan.
 
The second India-Japan 2+2 dialogue was held in Tokyo, Japan in September 2022 while the inaugural India-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministerial Dialogue (2+2) was held in New Delhi in November 2019. 
 
The framework for these talks was instituted after the decision taken by Indian Prime Minister Modi and then Japanese Prime Minister, the late Shinzo Abe, during the 13th India-Japan Annual Summit held in Japan in October 2018.
 
India and Japan share a 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership' which is now in its 10th year and is based on the shared values of democracy, freedom and rule of law.