India-Japan Friendship

Global order is witnessing the reaffirmation of the old ties and friendships. The more things change the more they remain the same. The present world order may be witnessing the collapse and hegemonistic approach of the United States (US) by imposing the tariff regime and exposing the US hypocrisy when it comes to sustain the friendship. It claimed to be the friend of India but its policies that have come to the fore with the Trump 2.0 regime have proved that it designs are imperialistic and inhuman meant to strangulate the developing nations and pose a threat to international economic order. It has tried to hide its failures by going ballistic even against its friends. The role played by the US during the India-Pakistan conflict and then its inclination to bail out Pakistan has proved that its commitment to deal with terrorism is selective. India invested in the American friendship with a hope that it will be fruitful for the two democracies and the US will shun its Cold War hangover but it seems that Washington has some other plans. Penalizing India for the trade with Russia by accusing India to help Russia in its war on Ukraine by virtue of business relations is absurd. These developments have indeed allowed the mandarins in New Delhi to change their focus and use a lens that is both microscopic and telescopic, having control on both present and future developments. And sending a message that the national interests are non-negotiable-be it on economic front or geostrategic front. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing visit to Japan must send a clear message that India values its time tested friends and India never ditches its friends. India and Japan are two nations having a common vision for a free, open, peaceful, prosperous and coercion free Indo-Pacific region guided and guarded by the rule of law. These are two economies with complementary resource endowments, technological capacities and cost competitiveness, and two nations with long tradition of friendship and mutual goodwill, having an intent to jointly navigate the changes and opportunities. Thus, for consolidating the India-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership, the two nations have underlined eight all-nation lines of effort with goals and targets. There are: (I) Next Generation Economic Partnership meant to building upon the progress made in the 2022-2026 target of JPY 5 trillion of public and private investment and financing from Japan to India and setting a new target of JPY 10 trillion of private investment. Strengthening India-Japan industrial cooperation for the “Make in India” initiative through the India-Japan Industrial Competitiveness Partnership (IJICP) to help upgrade product quality in India using high quality products necessary for Japanese firms. (II) Next Generation Economic Security Partnership for identifying and implementing concrete projects in the areas of semiconductors, critical minerals, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, telecommunication, clean energy and new and emerging technologies through the government and business tracks of the Dialogue on Economic Security including Strategic Trade and Technology. (III) Next Generation Mobility leveraging the strengths of Japanese advanced technologies and Indian talent, meant to establish the Next Generation Mobility Partnership (NGMP) as a framework for comprehensive cooperation in infrastructure, logistics and mobility. Through this partnership, the aim is to co-create solutions that will address the challenges in mobility fields where there is high demand in India and drive the development of a robust next-generation mobility and related industries that serves the vision of Make in India for the World. Utilising digital and smart technologies, focusing on sustainable and environment-friendly methodologies, and prioritising safety and disaster resilience. (IV) Next Generation Ecological Legacies for strengthening of energy cooperation under the India-Japan Clean Energy Partnership through the India-Japan Energy Dialogue. (V) Next Gen Technology and Innovation Partnership for promoting startup collaboration on open-innovation, social problem solving, advanced-tech, data-usage, incubation, and finance through the Japan-India Startup Support Initiative (JISSI) launched by Japan, and linking innovation ecosystems and enabling startups to expand their business in both countries. (VI) Investing in Next Gen Health meant for strengthening cooperation between India’s Ayushman Bharat initiative and Japan’s Asia Health and Wellbeing Initiative as well as in the global health sector. (VII) Next Gen People-to-People Partnership undertaken for launching an Action Plan for India-Japan Human Resource Exchange and Cooperation that targets an exchange of more than 500,000 personnel in both directions in the next five years, including 50,000 skilled personnel and potential talents from India to Japan. (VIII) Next-Gen State-Prefecture Partnership designed for strengthening commercial and business partnerships, including small and medium enterprises, reinvigorating local industries and promoting regional development through India-Kansai Business Forum, as well as exploring similar arrangements between India and Kyushu. Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Japan will surely strengthen the foundations of the India-Japan friendship and will open new avenues for the security and stability of the Indo-Pacific.