Japan-India Relations
Joint Statement Third Japan-India 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting
August 20, 2024
- Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, Ms. KAMIKAWA Yoko, Minister of Defense of Japan, Mr. KIHARA Minoru, Minister of Defence of India, Mr. Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, held the third Japan-India 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting in New Delhi on 20 August 2024.
- As two democratic countries that share common values, the Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining and strengthening rules-based international order founded on the principles of the UN Charter, respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and peaceful settlement of disputes without resorting to the threat or use of force and emphasized the need for all countries to refrain from any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo.
- 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 Ministers had a frank and wide-ranging discussion on regional and global issues focusing on the shared Indo-Pacific region. The Ministers valued 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 29 July 2024.
- The Ministers 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 Japan-India Special Strategic and Global Partnership.
- 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, such as Defence Policy Dialogue, Vice-Minister/Foreign Secretary level Dialogue, Foreign Office Consultations (FOC), the Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Dialogue, the Cyber Dialogue, the Japan-India Joint Working Group on CounterTerrorism , and other regional consultations on emerging and hotspot issues. They also looked forward to having dialogues in areas such as space, maritime affairs, and Africa. Furthermore, in light of the strategic depth of the bilateral relations, they concurred on promoting in-depth dialogues for further cooperation in the field of economic security and strategic trade. They also concurred on continuing to work together on Security Council reform with a view to strengthening the UN.
- Highlighting the importance of leading role of women in preventing conflicts, delivering relief and recovery efforts and forging lasting peace, the Ministers welcomed the advancement of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS), and Japanese and Indian women’s active participation in peacekeeping operations.
- The Ministers supported efforts to foster people-to-people exchanges that complement our strategic partnership. In this regard, they appreciated the significance of India's decision to establish a new Consulate in Fukuoka. They also welcomed the impending celebration of India Month in Japan and Japan Month in India in September.
- 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. They called for concerted actions against all UN-listed terrorist groups including Al Qaeda, ISIS/Daesh, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and their proxy groups, and to take resolute actions to root out terrorists’safe havens, eliminate terrorist financing channels, and halt cross-border movement of terrorists.
- The Ministers appreciated the progress in the defence cooperation and exchanges among each component between the two sides since the last meeting in September 2022. They welcomed the first air visit by Japanese fighters and their participation at Tarang Shakti, the first multilateral exercise hosted by the Indian Air Force. They also welcomed the conduct of the inaugural edition of the bilateral fighter exercise 'Veer Guardian 2023' between the Japan Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) and Indian Air Force (IAF) and conduct of the bilateral exercises of all the three services in one calendar year for the first time in 2023. The Ministers further concurred on deepening bilateral cooperation in field of space and cyber. They reaffirmed the importance of multilateral defence cooperation and exchanges in the Indo-Pacific region. The Ministers expressed their commitment to continuing bilateral and multilateral exercises including “Dharma Guardian”, JIMEX and “Malabar.”
- The Ministers appreciated that the first Joint Service Staff Talks were held. The Ministers further appreciated the successful completion of the cooperation in the areas of Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV)/Robotics. They appreciated the progress made for the transfer of Unified Complex Radio Antenna (UNICORN) and related technologies and early signing of related arrangements. The Ministers expressed their satisfaction with the seventh Japan-India Joint Working Group on Defence Equipment and Technology Cooperation. They concurred on accelerating future cooperation in defence equipment and technology. The Ministers welcomed the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force and Indian Naval Force exploring future cooperation in the area of ship maintenance in India. In addition, the Ministers concurred on exploring discussions for coordination and cooperation in the field of defence and security assistance to third countries for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
- The Ministers shared the intention to revise and update the 2008 Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation between Japan and India to reflect contemporary priorities and be responsive to contemporary security challenges facing them.
- The Ministers concurred to contribute to a productive visit by Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi to Japan for the next Annual Summit. They decided to hold the next 2+2 Ministerial Meeting in Japan.
