Rajnath Singh and S. Jaishankar to hold meetings with Japanese counterparts in Tokyo

Rajnath singh and S Jaishankar to meet Japnese counterpart

The 2+2 meeting between Japan and India will happen after over two years (the last one was in August 2024) with the security situation still far from smooth as Beijing continues to spend heavily on defence. The Chinese military buildup (officially about USD 280 billion this year) has caused disquiet among its neighbours like Japan, South Korea and The

Philippines. Both sides will clearly assess the situation in not just the Indo-Pacific but also West Asia, as both Japan and India are heavily dependent on oil imports. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the World’s went through, has affected the economies of both countries.

Japanese defence minister Shinjiro Koizumi and foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi will interact with Singh and Jaishankar, possibly on November 18 and 19. In fact, Motegi and Jaishankar have just held discussions in the United States of America. Japan, India, Australia and the USA have also held a QUAD meeting.

Closer defence ties are being considered and also, shipyard construction as well as shipbuilding. There may be discussions about some features of the Japanese Mogami-class frigates which the Australians have bought and the New Zealanders may be interested in, some stealth technologies, particularly now as Japan has changed its defence export rules, easing them considerably. Japan may offer a seaplane that the Indian Navy could lease.

India has 2+2 ties with only a handful of countries including its QUAD partners, Great Britain and Russia. So far, India and Japan have held three 2+2 meetings— in 2019, 2022 and 2024. With the two Prime Ministers Sanae Takaichi and Narendra Modi talking about being like ‘brother and sister,’ the relationship can only move forward.

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