India, Japan deepen defence, AI, energy ties; finalise economic roadmap

INdia and nihon on th unveiled measures to spread out cooperation in defence, vitality certificate, rare earths and AI, and finalised a joint roadmap for economic security, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Sanae Takaichi emphasised the importance of mutual trust underpinning bilateral ties in a world order facing growing uncertainty.Takaichi, on her first visit to India since becoming prime minister, arrived with a high-powered business delegation and joined Modi for the 16th annual India-Japan Summit. The leaders also participated in a joint economic forum focused on boosting Japanese investments in India. In addition to agreeing on a range of steps to deepen defence cooperation, including the joint development of military platforms, the two sides agreed to upgrade a trade deal concluded in 2011.Under Takaichi’s leadership, Japan has focused on strengthening ties with like-minded partners such as India, Australia and South Korea against the backdrop of China’s continuing assertiveness across the region. According to a joint statement, Modi and Takaichi expressed “serious concern” at the situation in the East China Sea and South China Sea, and opposed unilateral actions that endanger freedom of navigation as well as attempts to change the status quo by force.At a joint media interaction with Takaichi after their talks, Modi referred to his remarks at last month’s G7 Summit about mutual trust being the greatest strategic asset in an environment of global uncertainty, and said the India-Japan partnership “stands the test of this principle in every respect”.Takaichi added, “Japan and India must leverage our respective strengths to become stronger and more prosperous together in the midst of international affairs in disarray. The establishment of such inter-complementary cooperative relations has become ever more important.”Modi said the measures agreed on by the two sides to broaden cooperation in defence, energy, trade and investment, AI, pharmaceuticals and shipbuilding will bolster regional peace and prosperity. He referred to Takaichi as his “younger sister”, and she responded by calling him her “bigger brother”.“In today’s era of uncertainty, India and Japan fully recognise the importance of economic security and energy security. In this direction, we have adopted a joint roadmap on economic security today,” Modi said, adding that the roadmap will strengthen supply chain resilience in strategic sectors such as semiconductors and advanced materials.Takaichi underscored three pillars at the centre of bilateral cooperation — deepening strategic cooperation to achieve common goals, including an alignment between her updated Free and Open Indo-Pacific policy and India’s MAHASAGAR vision; promoting cooperation in economic security and energy security to overcome “economic weaponisation” and build resilience in critical supply chains; and bolstering economic growth in both countries through investments and innovation collaboration.In the field of defence, state-run companies from the two sides concluded an agreement for the Unicorn, or Unified Complex Radio Antenna, project, which envisages the joint development of a radio antenna for Indian warships. Officials said the agreement will cover the transfer of technology, and the project will pave the way for joint development of air, land and sea systems, including unmanned vehicles.The two sides also agreed to expand military exercises, maritime domain awareness using satellite capabilities, and cooperation in naval maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), according to the joint statement. The prime ministers directed their foreign and defence ministers to hold the fourth round of the 2+2 ministerial meeting in Tokyo by the end of the year.Modi noted that the bilateral investment partnership continues to grow, with more than 100 new business agreements concluded over the past year, paving the way for $10 billion in Japanese investments. “Our objective is clear — to attract 10 trillion yen in Japanese investments into India over the next 10 years and to double the number of Japanese companies operating in India,” he said.Two-way trade reached $27.5 billion in 2025-26, while Japanese investments in India were worth $3.2 billion between April and December 2025, according to Indian government data. Japan is among India’s largest foreign investors and has backed key infrastructure projects, including metro networks in major cities and the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed railway.The joint statement said the prime ministers reaffirmed the importance of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail project as a flagship initiative, and Takaichi stated, “Japan fully understands India’s target to commence commercial operations on priority sections in 2027 and remains committed to extending the necessary cooperation”.The two sides acknowledged the goal of introducing Japan’s E10 bullet train, and Modi invited Japanese companies to explore opportunities to participate in the development of future high-speed corridors.With more than 15 years having passed since the two countries signed their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), India and Japan agreed to accelerate the review of its implementation and full and effective use to make it more forward-looking, the joint statement said.Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told a media briefing that the CEPA had become “somewhat dated” in the context of new trade arrangements being struck across the world. The Indian side proposed that the time had come to consider a significant upgrade of the CEPA, and Takaichi said officials from both sides should meet to take the next steps, Misri said.The Joint Declaration on Economic Security will promote project-based collaboration to enhance joint resilience in key sectors such as semiconductors, critical minerals, information and communication technology, including AI, clean energy and pharmaceuticals. This will include both government-to-government and business-to-business collaboration.While the Joint Declaration did not name any country, it was clear that many of the measures were drawn up with China’s recent actions in mind. Both sides expressed “grave concerns” over the use of economic coercion and non-market practices, including “arbitrary export restrictions” leading to supply chain disruptions, particularly for critical minerals.In the context of China’s dominance in pharmaceuticals, the two sides agreed to explore alternative supply chains for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and Key Starting Materials (KSMs), conduct a vulnerability analysis, and explore possibilities for mutual cooperation to ensure the stable supply of these commodities.The Joint Statement on Energy Resilience will facilitate cooperation in strategic stockpiling and reserve mechanisms for crude oil and petroleum products, and promote joint investments across the maritime energy transport value chain. Takaichi said a bilateral dialogue will be launched to strengthen India’s petroleum stockpiling system, and Japan will back India’s membership of the International Energy Agency (IEA).The Joint Statement on Cooperation in AI will elevate collaboration in this field to a strategic research and development partnership. While building on the India-Japan AI Initiative, the statement serves as a roadmap for greater cooperation across the AI technology stack in line with a shared vision of safe, secure, trusted, inclusive and human-centric AI.The two sides finalised six memorandums of cooperation, including for establishing 1,000 biogas and organic fertiliser plants across India by leveraging a network of dairy cooperatives; setting up battery-related projects to build a resilient and sustainable battery supply chain; strengthening pharma supply chains through bilateral investment and business linkages; boosting joint work in upstream critical minerals exploration; and promoting cooperation between the IndiaAI Mission and Japan’s GENIAC initiative through B2B matchmaking and joint projects.The memorandum of cooperation on the Next Generation Mobility Partnership (NGMP) will establish a framework for accelerating private sector-led cooperation and investments in rail, automotive and road infrastructure, aviation, shipbuilding and ports, logistics and urban development.The two sides also concluded five memorandums of understanding on research and innovation in deep tech and life sciences, biological and neurological research, collaboration on large language models (LLMs) with a focus on developing LLMs for enhanced scientific reasoning, and cooperation in National Internet Registry operations and internet security improvements.