Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi inspected the ceremonial Guard of Honour at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

Koizumi also laid a wreath at the National War Memorial, paying tribute to the soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice.

His maiden official visit to India began on Wednesday when he arrived in Mumbai for a two-day itinerary focused on deepening defence ties and advancing maritime security cooperation.

Upon arrival in Mumbai, Koizumi inspected a Guard of Honour at the Western Naval Command and laid a wreath at the Gaurav Stambh at the Naval Dockyard.

As part of his operational briefings, the Japanese Defence Minister visited the indigenous stealth destroyer INS Chennai. He held strategic discussions with Indian Navy Chief Admiral Krishna Swaminathan and Vice Admiral Sanjay Mahajan Vatsayan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command.

The Japanese delegation was comprehensively briefed on the operational capabilities, roles and regional responsibilities of the Indian Navy, according to the Ministry of Defence.

Japanese Ambassador to India Keiichi Ono highlighted the engagement on social media, welcoming Koizumi and noting that the two-day program began with a visit to the Western Naval Command in Mumbai. He emphasised fruitful discussions on advancing maritime cooperation.

On Thursday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold a bilateral meeting with Koizumi in New Delhi. The meeting aims to further bolster bilateral defence relations and promote peace across the Indo-Pacific region.

The Ministry of Defence stated that the meeting is expected to strengthen bilateral defence relations, enhance strategic trust and cooperation, promote stability and security in the Indo-Pacific, and identify new areas of collaboration.

Both leaders will exchange views on deeper maritime security cooperation and closer defence equipment and technology collaboration under the ‘Make-in-India’ framework. This follows Japan’s revision of its Three Principles on Transfer of Defence Equipment and Technology.

The Ministry added that the meeting provides an opportunity to build a roadmap for advancing bilateral defence and security cooperation. It emphasised that India and Japan share a common vision of building a free, open, resilient and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.

The two-day visit of the Japanese Defence Minister underscores the growing momentum in bilateral defence cooperation and reflects the commitment of both sides to further expand the partnership.

This high-level security dialogue follows Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s visit to India in July for the 16th Annual Summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

During that summit, both sides agreed to deepen defence and security cooperation. They signed agreements worth over $10 billion aimed at boosting investments in artificial intelligence, defence and clean energy.

The summit also targeted 10 trillion yen (6,00,000 Crores) in Japanese investments over the next decade, highlighting the scale of Japan’s strategic and economic engagement with India.

Agencies