India, Japan deepen relationship

India and Japan are moving to the next phase of deepening their relationship, with high-level exchanges between the countries taking place now at a greater frequency than ever before, Japan’s Consul-General to India Yoshiaki Ito said at a conference organised by the Observer Research Foundation in Mumbai on Tuesday.

“India is the most important global partner for Japan in Asia,” Mr Ito said. He pointed to the shared values of democracy and freedom, and the ancient civilisational ties between the two countries. The consul-general asked two questions: Apart from the bullet-train, what more can Japan do to transform India’s vast transportation sector And are all the Japanese investments in India successful ones ORF Mumbai chairman Sudheendra Kulkarni echoed Mr Ito in saying the Indo-Japanese relationship is a steadily strengthening one.

He pointed to the Japanese values of cleanliness and subtlety and said the country provides an alternate paradigm of wealth-creation. “Our partnership is not directed against any other country,” he added, saying that ancient wisdom commended a path of neighbourly cooperation.

Other speakers at the event included former Maruti Suzuki managing director Jagdish Khattar and former ambassador of India to Japan Aftab Seth.