India, Japan agree to diversify cooperation in emerging domains like defence space, cyber
1 min read . Updated: 05 Apr 2023, 07:09 PM IST
Premium- The decision to further expand defence ties was taken at the seventh edition of India-Japan defence policy dialogue, which was co-chaired by defence secretary Giridhar Aramane and Japan’s vice minister of defence for international affairs Oka Masami in Delhi
NEW DELHI : India and Japan on Wednesday agreed to diversify their defence cooperation in new and emerging domains like space and cyber as part of an aim to consolidate the overall strategic engagement, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
The decision to further expand defence ties was taken at the seventh edition of India-Japan Defence Policy Dialogue, which was co-chaired by Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Japan’s Vice Minister of Defence for International Affairs Oka Masami in Delhi.
“A wide range of issues, including service-level exercises and engagements, regional security issues and cooperation in defence equipment and technology, were discussed during the meeting," the defence ministry said.
It said the Japanese vice minister presented policy updates from their recently released National Security Strategy and National Defence Strategy.
“The defence secretary emphasised that both the countries should aim to deepen collaboration between the respective defence industries. He also invited Japanese defence industries to look at investment opportunities in India under the ‘Make in India’ initiative," the ministry said.
“Both sides agreed to diversify cooperation in new and emerging domains like defence space and cyber," it added.
India and Japan reiterated their commitment towards a strong defence partnership and agreed to find opportunities to further enhance the bilateral cooperation. Both sides also agreed to hold the next Defence Policy Dialogue at mutually convenient dates.
Both sides also appreciated the growing cooperation between the services through staff talks and exercises. ‘’They welcomed the conduct of the inaugural fighter exercise ‘Veer Guardian’ between the Indian Air Force and Japanese Air Self Defence Force in January this year in Japan,‘’ the ministry said.
The Defence Policy Dialogue is an institutional mechanism between India and Japan to discuss bilateral defence cooperation.
