New Delhi: The India-Japan global partnership is based on shared democratic values and respect for the rule of law and promotes peace and stability in the Inda-Pacific, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday after holding wide-ranging talks with his Japanese counterpart Furnia Kishida.

The two prime ministers largely focused on significantly boosting cooperation in areas of clean energy; semiconductors and co-development of military hardware besides exploring ways to deal with regional security challenges amidst the increasing assertiveness of China.

During the talks, Mr Modi conveyed to Mr Kishida that one of the areas of very strong cooperations between India and Japan could be co-innovation, co-design and co-creation in the defence manufacturing sector, officials said.

Mr Modi and Mr Kishida vowed to work together to deal with pressing global challenges under India’s presidency of the G20 and Japan’s chairship of the G7 grouping.

Mr Kishida, who was in India for just about 27 hours, said he invited Mr Modi to the G-7 summit in Hiroshima in May; and the offer was immediately accepted. On the sidelines of the talks, a note was exchanged between the two sides concerning the provision of the fourth tranche of a Japanese loan of up to 300 billion yen ($F J20.69bn) for the Mumbai- Ahmedabad high-speed rail.

“The India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership is based on our shared democratic values, and respect for the rule of law in the international arena,” Mr Modi said.

“Strengthening this partnership is not only important for both our countries, but it also promotes peace, prosperity and stability in the Inda-Pacific region. In our conversation today, we reviewed the progress made in our bilateral relations,” he added.

The Japanese PM was in New Delhi on a brief visit amid global geopolitical turmoil over the Ukraine conflict and increasing concerns over China’s behaviour in the Inda-Pacific.

Mr Modi said they exchanged views on defence equipment and technology collaboration, trade, health, and digital partnership.

There was also a fruitful discussion on the importance of reliable supply chains in semiconductors and other technologies.

Source- Xinhua

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