As External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, India and Japan decided to launch an AI Dialogue and a new joint working group on critical minerals this year.
After meeting Motegi, Jaishankar posted on X, “Pleased to co-chair the 18th India-Japan Strategic Dialogue alongside FM Toshimitsu Motegi in New Delhi today. Our Special Strategic and Global Partnership is on an upward trajectory and holds immense potential for shaping the world order and de-risking the international economy.”
“Today’s discussions on deeper economic, maritime, supply chain, critical mineral, technology, P2P and multilateral cooperation were reflective of our shared interests and mutual understanding. Also had a useful exchange of perspectives on Indo-Pacific and regional & global developments,” he said.
Officials said that under the Economic Security Initiative, both sides will convene the private sector dialogue to enhance public-private cooperation in the field of economic security. The second round of the Economic Security Dialogue led by FS-Vice Minister will be held in the first half of 2026.
“In order to give a coherent push to our engagement in AI, both sides launched the AI Dialogue to be led by the Foreign Ministries at the JS-DG level. This is a new initiative,” the official said. “To advance cooperation in rare earth elements and critical minerals, both sides decided to convene the JWG on Critical Minerals in early 2026. This is a new initiative.”
The Japanese Foreign Minister met Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of his talks with Jaishankar.
Toshihiro Kitamura, a spokesperson for the Japan Foreign Ministry, said Jaishankar and Motegi deliberated extensively on various global issues to align their views and discussed the importance of Quad.
Kitamura said extensive deliberations were held on ensuring economic security in view of the current geopolitical developments, adding the two sides agreed to set up a joint working group on critical minerals.
Ministry of External Affairs’ official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Jaishankar and Motegi underlined the importance of further strengthening the India-Japan special strategic and global partnership.
In his televised opening remarks at the meeting, Jaishankar said India’s vision for the Indo-Pacific aligns closely with Japan’s outlook for a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific”. “We are leading democracies, we are the major economies of the world, and we have today not just an opportunity, but also an obligation, a duty to shape the global order,” he said.
“And in the current uncertain global situation, it’s even more important that we work closely towards shared strategic goals.”
Jaishankar also said that economic security has become very important in the current global context. “I think both our countries attach enormous importance to it, and how to de-risk our own economies, and how to de-risk the international economy are both very important… So, we will be discussing resilient supply chains, critical minerals, how to address energy, health, and maritime security in our talks today.”
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