India, Japan Deepen Defence Ties in Indo-Pacific Push
India and Japan agreed on Wednesday to strengthen defence and maritime-security cooperation, as both countries seek a larger role in protecting sea routes and stability across the Indo-Pacific region.
Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met his Japanese counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, in New Delhi. The two ministers signed a memorandum on maritime-security cooperation and pledged to deepen their defence partnership, according to a joint statement.
India and Japan are both members of the Quad, alongside the United States and Australia. The grouping is widely viewed as a strategic response to China’s growing influence in the Indian Ocean and the broader Asia-Pacific region.
“The two ministers affirmed their commitment to further deepen defence cooperation to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the statement said. It added that closer cooperation was important not only for India and Japan, but also for regional and international security, according to Hurriyet Daily News.
The talks also focused on naval shipbuilding and design. Tokyo’s advanced technology and New Delhi’s expanding industrial capacity could be brought together under India’s wider Make in India drive, which aims to reduce the country’s dependence on imported weapons and build a stronger domestic defence industry.
This is not a single programme limited to Japan. India has increasingly sought licensed production, technology transfers and joint ventures with foreign manufacturers, particularly from Western countries. Under the government’s procurement framework, foreign companies are encouraged to partner with Indian firms to manufacture equipment and parts inside India, while building local supply chains and technical skills. India permits up to 74 percent foreign investment in defence manufacturing through the automatic route, with higher investment possible through government approval when advanced technology is involved.
One major example is India’s partnership with Airbus of Spain. Of 56 C-295 military transport aircraft ordered for the Indian Air Force, 16 were supplied from Spain, while the remaining 40 are being manufactured and assembled in India by Tata Advanced Systems at Vadodara. India has also built French-designed Scorpene submarines domestically through a long-running technology-sharing arrangement with France.pib.
Koizumi’s visit followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s July meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, when the two leaders agreed to work more closely on critical minerals, an industry heavily dominated by China.
China has warned that international cooperation should not be used to form exclusive blocs or deepen confrontation. But for India and Japan, the agreement reflects a shared view that security at sea, industrial strength and strategic independence are now closely linked.
