Modi’s visit to Tokyo this week has pushed India–Japan defense cooperation into a new era. At the heart of the trip lies the decision to update the Declaration on Security Cooperation—a pact first signed in 2008 and now poised for its most significant overhaul.
What began nearly two decades ago as a largely symbolic framework for dialogue is now being reshaped into a practical roadmap for action. The revised pact will expand joint military exercises, formalize policy coordination, and accelerate the transfer and co-development of defense technologies.
The stakes could hardly be higher. For India, sharpening tensions along the Himalayan border with China and the need to safeguard vital sea lanes in the Indian Ocean have elevated defense partnerships to a strategic priority. For Japan, North Korea’s repeated missile launches and Beijing’s growing presence in the East and South China Seas highlight vulnerabilities in its security environment. Both governments see the upgraded pact not as a gesture of goodwill, but as a necessary step toward regional stability.
From Symbolism to Strategy
When the original declaration was signed in 2008, it was groundbreaking. For decades, India and Japan had enjoyed cordial relations, built largely on economic and cultural ties, but defense cooperation remained cautious. Tokyo, still constrained by its pacifist constitution, had traditionally avoided deep military partnerships. New Delhi, long guided by non-alignment, had been wary of formal defense pacts.
The 2008 declaration broke that pattern. It articulated shared values—commitment to peace, stability, democracy, and freedom of navigation—and laid out a framework for consultation. While modest in scope, it created the political space for something new: a defense relationship between Asia’s two largest democracies.
Historical Sidebar: The 2008 Breakthrough
The signing of the Declaration on Security Cooperation came during Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso’s tenure and was championed by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. It was modeled in part on Japan’s existing declaration with Australia and was widely seen as Tokyo’s attempt to expand its network of strategic partners. Though cautious in tone, the pact marked the first formal recognition that India and Japan had converging security interests in the Indo-Pacific.
Since then, the relationship has steadily deepened. Naval exercises became more regular, and intelligence sharing expanded. Japan joined the Malabar naval exercises alongside India and the United States, transforming what had once been bilateral drills into a trilateral—and later quadrilateral—forum.
A Changed Landscape
Seventeen years later, the Indo-Pacific looks radically different. China has grown more assertive in its maritime and territorial claims. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has destabilized global norms, underlining the fragility of the rules-based order. And the United States has urged allies and partners to step up their contributions to maintaining regional stability.
The 2008 pact, once hailed as visionary, now looks outdated. Both governments want a new version that matches today’s realities. The revised agreement is expected to include:
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Larger, more frequent joint exercises — including potential integration of carrier operations, air force coordination, and joint patrols.
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Expanded defense industry collaboration — with Japan contributing advanced technologies and India providing industrial scale.
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Intelligence and cybersecurity coordination — a recognition that modern security threats extend into digital and space domains.
Historical Sidebar: The Quad’s Resurgence
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad)—comprising India, Japan, Australia, and the U.S.—first emerged in 2007 but quickly lost momentum. It was revived a decade later as concerns over China’s assertiveness grew. For Japan and India, the Quad provided a multilateral framework for security cooperation. Participation in joint naval exercises under the Quad umbrella helped normalize their defense relationship and prepared the ground for today’s deeper bilateral pact.
The Technology Dimension
Perhaps the most consequential element of the revised pact is technology transfer and co-development. Japan’s defense sector, though smaller than that of the United States, is advanced in areas such as maritime surveillance, missile defense, and aerospace components. India, for its part, has been working to strengthen its domestic defense industry under the Make in India initiative, but it still relies heavily on imports for high-end systems.
By linking Japanese technology with Indian manufacturing capacity, the two sides hope to accelerate innovation while diversifying supply chains away from overdependence on Western or Russian systems. Areas under discussion reportedly include:
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Unmanned systems (drones and undersea vehicles)
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Cyber defense and information warfare tools
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Space security cooperation, including satellite surveillance
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Advanced naval platforms and fighter aircraft components
Historical Sidebar: Lessons from the ShinMaywa Deal
One of the most high-profile defense negotiations between India and Japan in the past decade centered on the potential sale of the ShinMaywa US-2 amphibious aircraft. While talks ultimately stalled over pricing and technology transfer conditions, the episode was a turning point: it showed Japan’s willingness to consider major defense exports, and India’s determination to secure high-tech capabilities. The new pact is expected to address the very barriers that hindered that deal—by formalizing frameworks for co-development and easing restrictions on technology transfer.
Regional Ripples
The Indo-Pacific today is the world’s most contested strategic theater. For smaller states in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, balancing relations with China, the U.S., and regional powers has become increasingly fraught. By tightening their security ties, India and Japan are signaling that they intend to be anchors of stability—and alternatives to overdependence on any single great power.
For Beijing, this deepening partnership will not go unnoticed. Both New Delhi and Tokyo are careful to frame the pact as defensive and rules-based, but its implications are clear: the two countries are preparing to counterbalance Chinese assertiveness.
At the same time, the pact complements existing frameworks like the U.S.–Japan alliance and the Quad, weaving India more tightly into the fabric of Indo-Pacific security architecture.
Domestic Calculations
Both Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba recognize the domestic resonance of this announcement.
For Modi, the pact underscores his government’s twin priorities: strengthening India’s national security and cementing its status as a rising global power. Defense self-reliance remains a key political theme, and partnership with Japan lends credibility to his promises of modernization.
For Ishiba, the move signals Japan’s determination to evolve beyond its postwar pacifist constraints. While constitutional limits remain, public opinion in Japan has gradually shifted in favor of a more proactive defense posture—particularly as regional threats mount.
Still, challenges loom. Japan’s defense spending increases face scrutiny amid growing fiscal burdens, and India’s ability to absorb advanced technologies quickly is not guaranteed. The success of the pact will depend not just on intentions, but on execution.
A Milestone in the Making
Observers are calling this one of the most significant milestones in India–Japan defense relations since the original 2008 declaration. It marks a transition from occasional gestures of cooperation to structured, sustained integration.
If implemented successfully, the upgraded pact could become a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific security, sitting alongside the U.S.–Japan Security Treaty and multilateral groupings like the Quad. It represents not just an alignment against shared threats, but the emergence of Tokyo and New Delhi as co-architects of a regional order.
Looking Ahead
The true measure of success will lie in implementation:
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Will co-development projects move from plans to production?
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Will naval exercises expand to cover contested waters, potentially including joint patrols in the South China Sea?
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Will political will endure amid domestic debates and external pressures?
What is clear is that India and Japan are no longer satisfied with symbolic gestures. This upgraded declaration marks a decisive pivot toward a harder-edged, more practical partnership. In a region where uncertainty is the norm, that shift could prove pivotal—not just for Tokyo and New Delhi, but for the entire Indo-Pacific.