Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day official visit to Japan, from 29–30 August 2024, has marked a watershed in Asian diplomacy, signalling both the deepening of India–Japan relations and a significant recalibration of Indo-Pacific geopolitics. The visit, undertaken at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, was Modi’s first standalone trip to Japan in nearly seven years and took place during the 15th India–Japan Annual Summit.
The outcomes of the visit — particularly Japan’s unprecedented pledge of USD 68 billion in investments over the next decade — are not only poised to turbocharge India’s economic growth but also represent Japan’s strategic pivot towards overseas investments in the face of economic stagnation at home. The depth of India–Japan relations cannot be appreciated without acknowledging the centuries of cultural and spiritual exchanges that underpin them. The consecration of the Great Buddha at Todaiji Temple in Nara by the Indian monk Bodhisena in 752 AD remains a remarkable early link. Japanese traditions such as the Shichifukujin (Seven Lucky Gods) carry unmistakable Hindu influences.
In the modern era, individuals like Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Rash Behari Bose, J. R. D. Tata, and Justice Radhabinod Pal strengthened bilateral goodwill. Justice Pal’s dissenting judgment at the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal continues to be remembered with reverence in Japan. The establishment of the Japan–India Association in 1903 further formalised this bond of friendship.
Diplomatic Evolution and Strategic Convergence
Since the signing of the 1952 Peace Treaty, India and Japan’s relationship has matured through successive stages:
- 2000: Global Partnership
- 2006: Strategic and Global Partnership
- 2014: Special Strategic and Global Partnership
At its core, the partnership rests on a shared vision of a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific. India’s Act East Policy, SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) doctrine, and Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative dovetail neatly with Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision. Both nations also cooperate within multilateral forums such as the Quad and the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (India–Japan–Australia).
Defence and Security Cooperation
The Indo-Japanese security partnership has evolved significantly. Joint exercises such as MALABAR (with the US and Australia), JIMEX (naval), and Dharma Guardian (army) underscore the growing interoperability between their armed forces. Agreements on logistics, information sharing, and defence technology transfer have further solidified cooperation.
For Japan, which continues to navigate its constitutional constraints on military engagement, partnership with India offers a strategic counterbalance to China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.
Trade, Investment, and Infrastructure
Japan is one of India’s most vital economic partners. Bilateral trade reached USD 22.85 billion in FY 2023–24, with India exporting chemicals, vehicles, aluminium, and seafood while importing machinery, steel, copper, and electronics from Japan. With more than 1,400 Japanese companies and 5,000 business establishments operating in India, Japanese investment is deeply entrenched. Tokyo remains India’s largest bilateral donor, having funded transformative projects such as the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (Bullet Train). The new USD 68 billion investment pledge will likely act as an economic catalyst, reinforcing India’s position as a manufacturing and innovation hub at a time when Japan seeks growth opportunities abroad amidst domestic stagnation.
Science, Technology, and Cultural Exchange
Looking to the future, both sides have declared 2025–26 as the “India–Japan Year of Science, Technology and Innovation Exchanges”, celebrating four decades of scientific cooperation. Key areas of collaboration include:
- Space technology (ISRO–JAXA missions)
- Semiconductors and advanced electronics
- Clean energy and renewables
- Digital innovation and AI
Cultural and educational partnerships are equally robust. With over 665 institutional linkages and an Indian diaspora of more than 54,000 in Japan, people-to-people ties remain a vital pillar of the relationship. Events such as the International Day of Yoga in Japan and the upcoming India Pavilion at Expo 2025, Osaka further strengthen these connections.
Spotlight on Semiconductors
A symbolic highlight of PM Modi’s visit was his journey on a bullet train with Prime Minister Ishiba to Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, where the leaders visited Tokyo Electron Miyagi Ltd (TEL Miyagi) — a key player in the global semiconductor supply chain. The visit underscored the complementarity between India’s burgeoning semiconductor ecosystem and Japan’s technological expertise. Both nations reaffirmed their commitment to the India–Japan Semiconductor Supply Chain Partnership, aiming to enhance resilience and reduce overdependence on China. PM Modi’s address at TEL Miyagi carried both historical sentiment and futuristic ambition. He invoked the shared legacy of Buddha and Radhabinod Pal, while urging both nations to “take the partnership from paper to people, and from people to prosperity.”
The State–Prefecture Partnership Initiative
A notable outcome of the summit was the launch of the State–Prefecture Partnership Initiative, designed to foster deeper sub-national exchanges. Modi emphasised that India’s states, like Japan’s prefectures, possess unique strengths that can drive grassroots-level collaboration in trade, education, technology, and tourism. By decentralising engagement, both sides aim to anchor the partnership in localised innovation and entrepreneurship, ensuring that cooperation extends beyond central governments.
Prime Minister Modi’s Japan visit has crystallised a new phase in Indo-Japanese relations — one defined not just by investment pledges and diplomatic rhetoric, but by a shared determination to shape the future of the Indo-Pacific order. With its combination of deep cultural ties, robust economic cooperation, defence collaboration, and technological synergies, the partnership now stands as a central pillar of Asian stability. As PM Modi declared in his address, “When young minds connect, great nations rise together.” If the momentum of this visit is sustained, India and Japan could well emerge as the dual engines of an Asian century, offering a counter-narrative to both Chinese assertiveness and American unpredictability.
