On the sidelines of India-Japan Forum summit, both nations said that they are very keen to work hand-in-hand and asserted to expand cooperation in the region. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi referred to an assertion by the leaders of the G7 countries at the grouping's Hiroshima summit in May that any attempts to change the status quo by force cannot be tolerated anywhere.
India is an indispensable partner to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific. Tokyo would like to further expand cooperation in the region with New Delhi, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Friday.
Hayashi said Japan is very keen to work hand-in-hand with India to make its G20 presidency successful, especially the upcoming summit of the intergovernmental forum.
The Japanese foreign minister said a call for upholding international law may sound like a mere slogan unless the challenges being faced by the Global South are dealt with effectively.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also described Japan as India's natural partner in his comments. Hayashi arrived in Delhi on Thursday on a two-day visit. "...What really does Japan means to India? Japan is in many ways the exemplary moderniser. It is an example of relevance...It’s also a country for which there is a lot of goodwill in history. Today under PM Modi, we also had great modernisation. A self-reliant India. Japan is a natural partnership in this modernising India," Jaishankar said.
"Japan has truly unleashed the revolution in India. The Suzuki revolution! The second revolution was the metro revolution. The third revolution is the high-speed rail in making. The fourth revolution is in Critical and emerging technologies and semi-conductors..." EAM S Jaishankar said at the inaugural session of the India-Japan forum," he added.
