Special strategic partnership with Japan, says Modi
Ties fundamentally transformed, says PM after meeting counterpart Shinzo Abe near Mount Fuji
YAMANASHI/TOKYO: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the partnership between India and Japan was fundamentally transformed and strengthened as a “special strategic and global partnership” as he and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held informal talks at a resort near Mount Fuji before visiting a factory of an industrial robot manufacturer on the first day of their two-day summit.
Modi, who arrived in Japan on Saturday evening to attend the 13th India-japan annual summit, later rode an express train to travel to Tokyo with Abe as the leaders spent eight hours together. Abe and Modi will hold a more formal summit in Tokyo on Monday, during which strengthening bilateral security and economic cooperation is expected to be high on the agenda.
The two prime ministers are reaffirming their ties amid growing worries about trade and regional stability. Relations with China are a major issue shared by Modi and Abe, as their cooperation may balance China’s growing regional influence and military assertiveness.
Modi was accorded a warm welcome that was characterised by special gestures.
“There are no negatives but only opportunities in this relationship which are waiting to be seized,” he told Kyodo News service.
The Japanese foreign ministry said the leaders had lunch at a hotel in Yamanashi Prefecture, west of Tokyo, and exchanged a wide range of views on pursuing “a free and open” Indo-pacific region. Abe told Modi about his recent trip to China, and both sides agreed on the need to cooperate closely on getting North Korea to drop nuclear weapons development, the ministry said in a statement.
Modi presented Abe two handcrafted stone bowls made from rose quartz and yellow quartz stone sourced from Rajasthan. Handwoven carpets from Mirzapur and a Jodhpuri wooden chest from Rajasthan with traditional work were also presented, an official said.
The PM chose Japan among the first nations to visit after assuming power four years ago.
He has been urging countries in the Indo-pacific region to unite against protectionism and cross-border tensions.
In another sign of closer relations, India and Japan are also set to hold their first joint military exercises involving ground forces, starting next month.
Modi was received by Abe on his arrival at the Hotel Mount Fuji in the scenic Yamanashi prefecture.