Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

A Confluence of Two Strategies: The Japan–India Security Partnership in the Indo-Pacific

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
India and Japan

Part of the book series: Politics of South Asia ((POSAS))

Abstract

The author details the drivers, possibilities and limitations of defence ties between India and Japan in this chapter. Jaishankar notes that the primary driver of ties is the shared concern about the implications of China’s rise. Japan’s reframing of its security role and “normalization” of its national security strategy and India’s rising defence and maritime profile in the Indo-Pacific region present opportunities to both governments. Tokyo has become an indispensable partner in the region’s security architecture as per New Delhi’s calculations. The confluence of these two strategies shows great promise. However, the author highlights certain limitations including the danger of overemphasizing defence trade and joint production in this partnership in addition to the structural constraint of India remaining “outside of the United States’ Asian alliance structure.” Jaishankar recommends two important avenues of cooperation—first, the utilization of Japan’s official development assistance to invest in strategic infrastructure and, second, deepening of cooperation between the ground and air forces of the two countries.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    For recent assessments of India–Japan security relations, see Rohan Mukherjee and Anthony Yazaki, eds., Poised for Partnership: Deepening India–Japan Relations in the Asian Century (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2016); Tomoko Kiyota, “Looming Over the Horizon: Japan ’s Naval Engagement with India,” in Anit Mukherjee and C. Raja Mohan, eds., India ’s Naval Strategy and Asian Security (Abingdon: Routledge, 2016), pp. 175–191; David Brewster, “The India–Japan Security Relationship: An Enduring Security Partnership?” Asian Security, 6, 2 (2010).

  2. 2.

    Dhruva Jaishankar, “Japan Bets Big on India ,” The Times of India , December 15, 2015; Pranab Dhal Samantha, “In Signal to China , Manmohan Singh Embraces Japan ’s Idea,” The Indian Express, May 29, 2013; Rory Medcalf, “A Term Whose Time Has Come: The Indo-Pacific,” The Diplomat, December 4, 2012.

  3. 3.

    This and all other unattributed quotes in this chapter are based on the interviews conducted with senior officials, bureaucrats, military officers and scholarly experts at the Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, Embassy of India and Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA), Tokyo, January 6–9, 2016.

  4. 4.

    Hiroyuki Akita, “China Shifts to Waiting Game on Senkakus,” Nikkei Asian Review, August 15, 2014; Shishir Gupta, The Himalayan Face-Off: Chinese Assertion and the Indian Riposte (Gurgaon: Hachette India , 2014).

  5. 5.

    “Japan ’s ODA Budget,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan , June 23, 2014, http://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/oda/budget/.

  6. 6.

    Steven R. Weisman, “Tokyo Faults U.S. Sanctions for Chinese,” The New York Times, June 22, 1989; Shang-Jin Wei, “Foreign Direct Investment in China : Sources and Consequences,” in Takatoshi Ito and Anne O. Krueger, eds., Financial Deregulation and Integration in East Asia (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996), pp. 77–105.

  7. 7.

    Reinhard Drifte, “Japanese–Chinese Territorial Disputes in the East China Sea —Between Military Confrontation and Economic Cooperation,” Working Paper, Asia Research Centre, London School of Economics and Political Science, 2008.

  8. 8.

    Andrew Monahan, “China Overtakes Japan as World’s No. 2 Economy,” The Wall Street Journal, February 14, 2011; World Economic Outlook, International Monetary Fund, October 2015.

  9. 9.

    “All at Sea,” Banyan, The Economist, November 10, 2010; Cheung Chi-fai, “Activists Proud of Ocean Odyssey to Disputed Diaoyu Islands,” South China Morning Post, August 16, 2012; Choi Chi-Yuk and Teddy Ng, “Protesters in Islands Row Vent Fury on Japanese Firms,” South China Morning Post, September 15, 2012; “Trends in Chinese Government and Other Vessels in the Waters Surrounding the Senkaku Islands, and Japan ’s Response,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan , January 6, 2016, http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/page23e_000021.html; “Chinese Officials Admit to MSDF Radar Lock Allegations,” The Japan Times, March 18, 2013; “Japan Scrambles F-15 Fighter Jets After Chinese Aircraft Spotted Near Senkakus,” The Japan Times, January 6, 2013; Jun Osawa, “China ’s ADIZ Over the East China Sea : A ‘Great Wall in the Sky’?” Brookings Institution, December 17, 2013.

  10. 10.

    “President Xi Attends Ceremony Remembering Japan ’s Aggression,” China Daily, July 7, 2014; Celia Hatton, “Is Xi Jinping Trying to Provoke Anger Against Japan ?” China Blog, BBC News, July 7, 2014.

  11. 11.

    Claire Phipps, “China Military Parade Commemorates Second World War Victory,” The Guardian, September 3, 2015.

  12. 12.

    Anthony Faiola, “Japan Upgrades Its Defense Agency,” The Washington Post, December 16, 2006.

  13. 13.

    “National Security Strategy,” Cabinet Secretariat, December 17, 2013, http://www.cas.go.jp/jp/siryou/131217anzenhoshou/nss-e.pdf.

  14. 14.

    Martin Fackler, “Amid Chinese Rivalry, Japan Seeks More Muscle,” The New York Times, December 17, 2013.

  15. 15.

    Katsuhisa Kuramae, “New National Security Bureau Faces Rocky Start,” Asahi Shimbun, January 8, 2014.

  16. 16.

    Heigo Sato, “Japan ’s Arms Export and Defense Production Policy,” Japan Chair, Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2015; James L. Schoff, “The Historic Part of Prime Minister Abe’s U.S. Visit,” U.S. News and World Report, April 21, 2015.

  17. 17.

    Jon Grevatt, “Japan Launches New Procurement Agency,” HIS Jane’s Defence Industry, October 1, 2015.

  18. 18.

    Erik Slaven, “Japan Enacts Major Changes to Its Self-Defense Laws,” Stars and Stripes, September 18, 2015.

  19. 19.

    Author interview with official of the Prime Minister’s Office (Kantei), Tokyo, January 2016.

  20. 20.

    “SDF Role in South Sudan to Expand in May Under New Security laws,” The Japan Times, September 22, 2015.

  21. 21.

    Kiyohumi Iwata, “GEN Iwata Speech Draft at AUSA 2014,” Ministry of Defense, Japan , October 23, 2014, http://www.mod.go.jp/gsdf/news/defense/2014/pdf/20141023_eng.pdf.

  22. 22.

    Jeff Schogol, “Japan to Create Amphibious Force Modeled After Marine Corps,” Defense News, March 3, 2014.

  23. 23.

    For details about A2/AD, see Aaron L. Friedberg, Beyond Air-Sea Battle: The Debate Over US Military Strategy in Asia (London: IISS & Routledge, 2014).

  24. 24.

    For details about Japan ’s evolution into a “normal” military power, see: Christopher W. Hughes, Japan ’s Re-emergence as a ‘Normal’ Military Power, Adelphi Paper (London: IISS and Routledge, 2005), pp. 368–369.

  25. 25.

    See, for example, Natasha Hamilton-Hart and Dave McRae, “Indonesia: Balancing the United States and China , Aiming for Independence,” The United States Studies Centre, University of Sydney, November 2015, pp. 8–11, 16–24.

  26. 26.

    Author interview with official from Japan ’s Ministry of Defense (Boeisho), Tokyo, January 2016.

  27. 27.

    Victoria Tuke, “Expanding Strategic Horizons: Japan ’s Foreign Policy Towards India ,” Tokyo Foundation, March 25, 2013.

  28. 28.

    Author interview with official from the Prime Minister’s Office (Kantei), Tokyo, January 2016.

  29. 29.

    Ibid.

  30. 30.

    Kiyota, “Looming Over the Horizon,” p. 179.

  31. 31.

    Peter Drysdale and Dong Dong Zhang, Japan and China : Rivalry or Cooperation in East Asia (Canberra: Asia Pacific Press, 2000); Jeff M. Smith, Cold Peace: China–India Rivalry in the Twenty-First Century (Lanham: Lexington, 2014); Bill Emmott, Rivals: How the Power Struggle Between China , India and Japan Will Shape Our Next Decade (Orlando: Harcourt, 2008).

  32. 32.

    Zorawar Daulet Singh, “The Himalayan Stalemate: Retracing the India–China Dispute,” Manekshaw Paper No. 27, Centre for Land and Warfare Studies, 2011; Srinath Raghavan, War and Peace in Modern India (Ranikhet: Permanent Black, 2010), pp. 227–266; “Chinese Military Acknowledges 2013 Incursion at Depsang Valley for First Time,” Economic Times, July 31, 2014; Dhruva Jaishankar, “The Great Sino-Indian Alpine Test Party of 2013,” Foreign Policy, May 8, 2013; Srinath Raghavan, “Don’t Get China Wrong,” The Hindu Business Line, April 24, 2013; “After Modi’s Hard Talk with Xi in Delhi, Chinese Troops Pull Back in Chumar,” India Today, September 18, 2014.

  33. 33.

    Rory Medcalf, “India Poll 2013—Facing the Future: Indian Views of the World Ahead,” Lowy Institute for Public Policy and Australia India Institute, May 20, 2013, p. 10.

  34. 34.

    Alistair Scrutton, “Manmohan Singh Says China Wants Foothold in South Asia ,” Reuters, September 7, 2010; Garver, Protracted Contest, pp. 138–166; David Brewster, “Sri Lanka Tilts Back from China ,” East Asia Forum, September 17, 2015; Nilanthi Samaranayake, “India ’s Key to Sri Lanka : Maritime Infrastructure Development,” The Diplomat, March 31, 2015; Atul Aneja, “New China –Myanmar Oil Pipeline Bypasses Malacca Trap,” The Hindu, January 30, 2015; Jane Perlez and Chris Buckley, “China Retools Its Military with a First Overseas Outpost in Djibouti ,” The New York Times, November 26, 2015.

  35. 35.

    Andrew Small, The China–Pakistan Axis: Asia’s New Geopolitics (New York: Oxford University Press, 2015); Koh Swee Lean Collin, “China and Pakistan Join Forces Under the Sea,” The National Interest, January 7, 2016; Priyanka Singh, “The China Pakistan Economic Corridor and India ,” IDSA Comment, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, May 7, 2015.

  36. 36.

    “U.S.–India Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region,” The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, January 25, 2015, https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/01/25/us-india-joint-strategic-vision-asia-pacific-and-indian-ocean-region.

  37. 37.

    “Act East Policy: India Envisages More Vigorous Engagement with SE Asia, Says Sushma Swaraj,” Economic Times, June 28, 2015; Manish Chand, “Act East: India ’s ASEAN Journey,” Ministry of External Affairs, November 10, 2014.

  38. 38.

    Suhasini Haidar, “India and Mauritius Announce Security Cooperation Pact,” The Hindu, March 12, 2015; Oscar Nkala, “India Developing Network of Coastal Radars,” DefenseNews, March 20, 2015; Indrani Bagchi, “Now, India Gets to Tug at China ’s ‘String of Pearls,’” The Times of India , June 7, 2015.

  39. 39.

    Dhruva Jaishankar, “India ’s Five Foreign Policy Goals: Great Strides, Steep Challenges,” The Wire, May 26, 2016.

  40. 40.

    C. Raja Mohan, Modi’s World: Expanding India ’s Sphere of Influence (Noida: HarperCollins India , 2015), pp. 1–2.

  41. 41.

    S. Jaishankar, “India–Japan Relations After Pokhran II,” Seminar, 487 (2000).

  42. 42.

    C. Raja Mohan, “India , Japan Unveil New Global Partnership,” The Hindu, August 24, 2000.

  43. 43.

    C. Raja Mohan and Rishik Chauhan, “India–Japan Strategic Partnership: Steady Advance Amidst Enduring Constraints,” in Mukherjee and Yazaki, Poised for Partnership, pp. 182–183.

  44. 44.

    Sandeep Dikshit, “India , Japan to Strengthen Defence Cooperation ,” The Hindu, May 27, 2004.

  45. 45.

    S. Jaishankar, “2004 Tsunami Disaster: Consequences for Regional Cooperation,” Presentation at the 26th Annual Pacific Symposium, June 8–10, 2005.

  46. 46.

    Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, “India and Japan : A Nascent Strategic Bonding,” Policy Brief, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, May 2015.

  47. 47.

    Srikanth Kondapalli, “Pranab’s Defence Diplomacy,” Rediff, June 6, 2006.

  48. 48.

    Mohan and Chauhan, “India–Japan Strategic Partnership,” p. 184.

  49. 49.

    “Japan–India Relations (Basic Data),” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan , December 28, 2015, http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/india/data.html.

  50. 50.

    Mohammed Badrul Alam, “A Study of India–Japan Strategic and Security Issues,” Scholar Warrior, Centre for Land and Warfare Studies, Spring 2013, p. 83.

  51. 51.

    Shinzo Abe , “Confluence of the Two Seas,” Speech to the Parliament of the Republic of India , August 22, 2007, http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/pmv0708/speech-2.html.

  52. 52.

    Tomohiko Taniguchi, “Beyond ‘the Arc of Freedom and Prosperity’: Debating Universal Values in Japanese Grand Strategy,” Asia Paper Series, German Marshall Fund of the United States , October 2010, pp. 1–2.

  53. 53.

    Mahmud Ali, “New ‘Strategic Partnership ’ Against China ,” BBC News, September 3, 2007.

  54. 54.

    “Abe’s Remarks ‘Cold-War Mentality,’” China Daily, August 23, 2007; See also David Brewster, India as an Asia Pacific Power (Abingdon: Routledge, 2012).

  55. 55.

    “Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation Between Japan and India ,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan , October 22, 2008, http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/india/pmv0810/joint_d.html.

  56. 56.

    “Action Plan to Advance Security Cooperation Based on the Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation Between Japan and India ,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan , December 29, 2009, http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/india/pmv0912/action.html.

  57. 57.

    C. Raja Mohan, Samudra Manthan: Sino-Indian Rivalry in the Indo-Pacific (Washington: Carnegie Endowment, 2012), pp. 106–107.

  58. 58.

    “First Bilateral Maritime Exercise Between India and Japan ‘JIMEX 12’ Commenced on June 09, 12,” Press Release, Indian Navy, June 9, 2012.

  59. 59.

    Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar, “First India–Japan Maritime Exercise in Bay of Bengal ,” The Hindu, December 17, 2013.

  60. 60.

    “Onodera Set to Pitch Plane to India ,” The Japan Times, September 22, 2013.

  61. 61.

    Dhruva Jaishankar, “A Fine Balance: India , Japan , and the United States ,” The National Interest, January 24, 2014.

  62. 62.

    Sandeep Dikshit, “India , Japan to Hold Second 2+2 Dialogue on Monday,” The Hindu, October 18, 2012.

  63. 63.

    Kiyota, “Looming Over the Horizon,” p. 178; Martin Fackler, “In Japan , U.S. Losing Diplomatic Ground to China ,” The New York Times, January 23, 2010; see also: Lam Peng Er, “Japan ’s Relations with China and South Korea: Anagonism Despite Interdependency,” in Zheng Yongnian and Lance L. P. Gore, eds., China Entering the Xi Jinping Era (Abingdon: Routledge, 2015).

  64. 64.

    Mohan and Chauhan, “India–Japan Strategic Partnership,” p. 194.

  65. 65.

    Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, “India and Japan ,” p. 9.

  66. 66.

    “Joint Statement on India and Japan Vision 2025: Special Strategic and Global Partnership Working Together for Peace and Prosperity of the Indo-Pacific Region and the World,” Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India , December 12, 2015 (hereafter “Joint Statement on India and Japan Vision 2025”).

  67. 67.

    Mohan and Chauhan, “India–Japan Strategic Partnership,” pp. 186–187.

  68. 68.

    “Tokyo Declaration for India–Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership ,” Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India , September 1, 2014 (hereafter “Tokyo Declaration”); “Joint Statement on India and Japan Vision 2025.”

  69. 69.

    “Joint Statement on India and Japan Vision 2025.”

  70. 70.

    Ibid.

  71. 71.

    Shashank Joshi, “Indian Power Projection: Ambition, Arms and Influence,” Whitehall Paper 85, Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, 2015, p. 135.

  72. 72.

    “India–Japan Defence Ties to Grow Stronger,” Economic Times, July 26, 2015.

  73. 73.

    Sanjaya Baru, “India , Japan Chart Asia’s Peaceful Rise,” The Hindu, December 15, 2015.

  74. 74.

    Hemant Krishan Singh, “Modi-Abe Summit: Shaping the Indo-Pacific,” Business Standard, December 15, 2015.

  75. 75.

    “Media Statement by Prime Minister with Japanese Prime Minister in New Delhi,” Prime Minister’s Office, Press Information Bureau, Government of India , December 12, 2015, http://pib.nic.in/newsite/mbErel.aspx?relid=133117.

  76. 76.

    “Tokyo Declaration”; “Joint Statement on India and Japan Vision 2025.”

  77. 77.

    Mohan and Chauhan, “India–Japan Strategic Partnership,” pp. 194–195.

  78. 78.

    Sourabh Gupta, “Abe and Modi Attempt to Bridge the Indo-Pacific,” East Asia Forum, January 5, 2016.

  79. 79.

    “Japan to Dispatch SDF to Nepal, Part of Multifaceted Aid Effort,” The Japan Times, April 28, 2015.

  80. 80.

    Mohan, Samudra Manthan, p. 106.

  81. 81.

    Noboru Yamaguchi and Shutaro Sano, “Japan–India Security Cooperation: In Pursuit of a Sound and Pragmatic Partnership,” in Mukherjee and Yazaki, Poised for Partnership, pp. 153–178.

  82. 82.

    Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, “India and Japan .”

  83. 83.

    Author interview with official from Japan ’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Gaimusho), Tokyo, January 2016.

  84. 84.

    Jyotsna Bhatnagar and Kajal Vadodaria, “Rs. 4000-Cr Dahej Desalination Plant Yet to See Light of Day,” The Financial Express, August 21, 2015.

  85. 85.

    “Freedom of Navigation Report for Fiscal Year 2014,” U.S. Department of Defense, March 23, 2015.

  86. 86.

    Demetri Sevastopulo and Hiroyuki Akita, “Japan Seeks Submarine Sale to Australia in First Big Weapons Export in 70 Years,” Financial Times, January 11, 2016.

  87. 87.

    Cameron Stewart, “Submarines ’ Three-Way Race Between France, Germany and Japan ,” The Australian, October 22, 2015.

  88. 88.

    Ashley Tellis, Dogfight! India ’s Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft Decision (Washington: Carnegie Endowment, 2011).

  89. 89.

    Kiyota, “Looming Over the Horizon,” p. 184.

  90. 90.

    Yamaguchi and Sano, “Japan–India Security Cooperation.”

  91. 91.

    “Japan , France Condemn Pathankot Terror Attack,” Business Standard, January 5, 2016; “North Korea ’s Test Matter of Deep Concern: MEA,” The Asian Age, January 7, 2016.

  92. 92.

    Author interview with official from Japan ’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Gaimusho), Tokyo, January 2016.

  93. 93.

    Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, “India ’s Maritime Strategy,” in Mukherjee and Mohan, eds., India ’s Naval Strategy and Asian Security, pp. 24–27.

  94. 94.

    Iskander Rehman, “Tomorrow or Yesterday’s Fleet? The Indian Navy’s Emerging Operational Challenges,” in Mukherjee and Mohan, eds., India ’s Naval Strategy and Asian Security, p. 57.

  95. 95.

    Rehman, “Tomorrow or Yesterday’s Fleet?” p. 55.

  96. 96.

    Joshi, “Indian Power Projection,” pp. 88–89.

  97. 97.

    Anit Mukherjee, “India as a Net Security Provider: Concept and Impediments,” Policy Brief, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, August 2014.

  98. 98.

    In 2013, Japan provided over $3.1 billion to India in loan aid. “Japan ’s ODA Disbursements to India by Fiscal Year,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan , 2014.

  99. 99.

    Tuke, “Japan ’s Foreign Policy Towards India ,” pp. 214–215.

  100. 100.

    S. Arun, “Rs 15K Cr North East Connectivity Project Struggling to Take Off,” The Hindu, November 14, 2015.

  101. 101.

    Selina Ho, “China ’s Shifting Perceptions of India : The Context of Xi Jinping’s Visit to India ,” Asia Pacific Bulletin, No. 279, East-West Center, October 2, 2014.

  102. 102.

    Natalie Obiko Pearson, “Japan Beating China in Race for Indian Ocean Deep-Sea Port,” Bloomberg Business, June 23, 2015.

  103. 103.

    John Aglionby, “Tokyo Takes on Beijing in Africa, Claiming Quality Over Speed,” Financial Times, January 11, 2016.

  104. 104.

    Amitav Ranjan, “Chabahar Port: India in a Hurry to Clear $150-mn Iran Credit Line,” Indian Express, December 22, 2015; Turloch Mooney, “India–Iran Joint Chabahar Port Development Stalls,” IHS Journal of Commerce, December 17, 2015.

Acknowledgments

The author is grateful to Rajesh Basrur, Anit Mukherjee and Sumitha Narayanan Kutty of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) in Singapore for support and the opportunity to write this chapter; and to several officers of India ’s Ministry of External Affairs and Japan ’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for facilitating research for this chapter.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Foreign Policy, Brookings India, New Delhi, India

    Dhruva Jaishankar

Authors
  1. Dhruva Jaishankar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Rajesh Basrur

  2. S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Sumitha Narayanan Kutty

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Jaishankar, D. (2018). A Confluence of Two Strategies: The Japan–India Security Partnership in the Indo-Pacific. In: Basrur, R., Kutty, S. (eds) India and Japan. Politics of South Asia. Palgrave Pivot, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8309-9_3

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation