Our Bureau
Tokyo
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday said that amid rising uncertainties in the global arena, collaboration with India becomes even more pertinent.
The Japanese PM was speaking at an informal press conference regarding her visit to India, wherein she said that she intends to advance concrete cooperation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She is scheduled to land in India later in the evening and meet PM Modi on Thursday.
“I will visit India shortly. Amid growing uncertainty in the international situation, the importance of collaboration with India, which shares fundamental values and strategic interests, is only increasing,” she said.
Takaichi said her visit aims at fostering collaboration between companies of both countries toward investment and innovation.
“In this context, through this visit, taking into account the current international situation, I intend to advance concrete cooperation with Prime Minister Modi, centering on three points: deepening the strategic cooperative relationship between Japan and India, promoting cooperation in economic security, and fostering collaboration between companies of both countries toward investment and innovation,” she said.
The Japanese Prime Minister said by uniting government and private sectors, she aims to broaden the scope of Japan-India cooperation.
“On the occasion of this visit to India, we plan to hold the Japan-India Economic Forum with the participation of more than 150 individuals from Japan’s business community. By uniting government and private sectors, we aim to broaden the scope of Japan-India cooperation and realize a strong economy,” she said.
“India, like Japan, as a major democratic country in Asia, bears responsibility for achieving peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. In that regard, I intend to firmly discuss with Prime Minister Modi efforts toward realizing a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” (FOIP), including the framework of Japan, the United States, Australia, and India,” she added.
She also intended to deepen personal trust with PM Modi.
“Finally, since this visit is realized at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi, I see it as an opportunity to further deepen the personal trust relationship with Prime Minister Modi,” she said.
Earlier in the day, Takaichi departed from Tokyo for India to attend the 16th India-Japan Annual Summit Meeting in Delhi.
