On 1st April, 2025, the third India-Japan Space Dialogue took place in Tokyo, marking an important milestone in the growing space collaboration between the two nations. The Indian delegation was co-led by Ms. Muanpuii Saiawi, Joint Secretary from the Disarmament and International Security Affairs Division of the Ministry of External Affairs, and Mr. M. Ganesh Pillai, the Scientific Secretary of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) under the Department of Space. The Japanese delegation was co-led by Mr. Saita Yukio, Assistant Minister and Ambassador in charge of Space Policy, Foreign Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Mr. Kazeki Jun, Director General of the National Space Policy Secretariat within Japan’s Cabinet Office.
The dialogue provided a platform for officials from both nations to come together, facilitating valuable discussions between ministries and agencies involved in space activities. The talks focused on a wide range of topics related to space exploration and cooperation, including national space programs, bilateral collaboration in space, space situational awareness, and space security. Additionally, there were discussions on the role of the Quad countries in space-related initiatives, industry partnerships, and the growing commercial space sector. The dialogue served as a venue to align both countries’ priorities and future goals in space.
As part of the engagement, the Indian co-chairs visited the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Tsukuba Space Center on 31st March, 2025, where they gained first-hand insight into Japan’s space technologies and initiatives.
Before the official dialogue, an industry cooperation event was organized by the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe) in collaboration with Japan’s Cabinet Office. This event brought together industry leaders, companies, and associations from both Japan and India, fostering partnerships and discussions on enhancing industry collaboration in the space sector.
The Japanese delegation highlighted that the event marked the beginning of the “Japan-India Science, Technology, and Innovation Exchange Year” and expressed Japan’s eagerness to collaborate with India to ensure its success, according to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).
The second India-Japan Space Dialogue took place virtually on 2nd November, 2021, with participation from representatives of ISRO, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), and the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) from the Indian side, and JAXA, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), and the Ministry of Defence (DOD) from Japan.
The first meeting of the India-Japan Space Dialogue occurred in New Delhi on 8th March, 2019.
Earlier in January 2025, India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met his Japanese counterpart, Iwaya Takeshi, during a visit to Washington, D.C., for the inauguration ceremony of the US President Donald Trump. During their meeting, the ministers agreed that the period from April 2025 to March 2026 would be celebrated as the “Japan-India Science, Technology, and Innovation Exchange Year.” The ministers discussed concrete actions to strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas such as security, economy, and people-to-people exchanges. They also noted that this year marks the 40th anniversary of the agreement on cooperation in science and technology. As a result, they decided to designate the period from April 2025 to March 2026 for the exchange year, aiming to further enhance cooperation by leveraging each nation’s strengths in science, technology, and innovation.
In the space sector, ISRO and JAXA are collaborating on the LUPEX (Lunar Polar Exploration) mission, a joint robotic lunar project focused on exploring the Moon’s South Polar Region. Under this collaboration, JAXA will provide the rover, while ISRO will contribute the lander.
