While New Delhi and Tokyo have identified regional cooperation across the Indo-Pacific as a major objective of their bilateral partnership, cooperation with ASEAN remains at the heart of their Indo-Pacific approach.
The India-Japan summit has laid out the foundations for a stronger operational strategic collaboration between the two countries.
The Indo-Pacific has emerged as a critical region in global politics. The stakes for India and Japan are rapidly rising in this theater, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) sits at the heart of it.
Leveraging Japanese expertise in robotic manufacturing and channelling local software talent would allow India to come to terms with a fast changing global economic scenario, where automation will rule the roost.
India’s issue with quadrilateral cooperation among India, Japan, Australia and the United States is no longer about the principle. New Delhi will sit down with anyone in any kind of forum if that serves India’s national interest.
Carnegie India, in partnership with the India Development Foundation, hosted a seminar to review Indo-Japanese economic and security cooperation in the region, and identify new possibilities for developing regional connectivity corridors and strengthening maritime security in the Bay of Bengal.
While New Delhi and Tokyo realize their limitations in competing with China-led initiatives, there is an unmatched intent and willingness in the Indo-Japanese relationship to collaborate on new areas across the region.
Relations between India and Japan have transformed over the past few years, in part due the rapid rise of China and growing uncertainty over the future U.S. role in Asia.
India’s partnership with Japan is increasingly acquiring a distinct strategic angle.
As the Indian Ocean re-emerges at the heart of global trade and becomes increasingly integrated with the Western Pacific, the Bay of Bengal is likely to emerge as a critical linkage between the two oceans.
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