PM Modi’s 2-Day Japan Visit concludes

By R Anil Kumar

Tokyo. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, 30 August, concluded his two-day visit to Japan and said that he would remember this trip for the ‘productive outcomes’ that will benefit the two countries, as he thanked his Japanese counterpart Shigeru Ishiba.

“This visit to Japan will be remembered for the productive outcomes which will benefit the people of our nations. I thank PM Ishiba, the Japanese people and the Government for their warmth,” said PM Modi, while sharing a from his Japan visit on ‘X’.

On day 2 of his Japan visit, PM Modi and Ishiba visited a semiconductor factory – Tokyo Electron Miyagi Ltd – in Sendai, which is 300 km away from Tokyo. The two leaders took a bullet train ride to reach Sendai, where PM Modi received a rousing welcome from the locals upon his arrival.

The visit to TEL Miyagi, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, underscored the shared vision of India and Japan to develop robust, resilient and trusted semiconductor supply chains. It must be noted that TEL Miyagi, a leading firm in semiconductors, is planning to collaborate with India.

“The semiconductor sector is a key area for India-Japan cooperation,” said PM Modi, “In the last few years, India has made many strides in this sector. A lot of youngsters are getting associated with it as well.”

PM Modi interacts with members of National Governor’s Association

Before visiting the semiconductor factory in Sendai, PM Modi also interacted with governors of 16 Japanese prefectures in Tokyo, and called for strengthening state-prefecture cooperation under the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met with the Governors of various Prefectures of Japan. Sixteen Governors participated in the interaction.

In his address, Prime Minister noted that India-Japan contemporary ties, drawing vitality from the age-old civilizational connections between the two countries, have continued to flourish. Highlighting the momentum in the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership across domains, he emphasised that time had come to give a renewed push to State-Prefecture engagement, going beyond the ties centred around Tokyo and Delhi.

In this context, he underlined the State-Prefecture Partnership Initiative launched at the 15th Annual Summit which would give a boost to trade, technology, tourism, skills, security and cultural linkages between the two countries. He urged the Governors and Indian State governments to leverage the new initiative and forge partnerships in the fields of manufacturing, technology, innovation, mobility, next-generation infrastructure, start-ups and SMEs.

Noting that each Prefecture in Japan has its niche economic and technological strengths, and likewise Indian states their own diverse capabilities, Prime Minister invited the Governors to participate in India’s growth story. He urged them to contribute towards youth and skills exchange commitments made by the two countries and optimally combine Japanese technology with Indian talent. The Governors noted that sub-national collaboration was key to take India-Japan business, educational, cultural and people-to-people ties to the next level of ambition.

In his address, the Prime Minister also urged the Japanese governors and Indian state governments to forge stronger collaborations in manufacturing, mobility, next-generation infrastructure, innovation, start-ups and small businesses.

“There is immense scope to cooperate in areas like trade, innovation, entrepreneurship and more. Futuristic sectors like Startups, tech and AI too can be beneficial,” he posted on ‘X’.

PM Modi attends lunch hosted by Ishiba

Besides, the Prime Minister also attended a lunch hosted by Ishiba in Tokyo.

Japan’s 10 trillion yen investment target

On Friday, 29 August, Japan announced its investment target of 10 trillion yen (approximately Rs 60,000 crores) in India over a decade after the two sides sealed a raft of big-ticket pacts, including a framework for defence ties and a 10-year roadmap to largely boost economic partnership.

Other agreements signed include an economic security architecture to promote supply chain resilience in strategic sectors such as semiconductors, clean energy, telecom, pharmaceuticals, critical minerals and new and emerging technologies.

The 10-year roadmap focuses on significantly expanding overall economic ties. It comprised several key pillars for boosting engagement that included economic security, mobility, ecological sustainability, technology and innovation, health, people-to-people exchanges and engagements between Indian states and Japanese prefectures.