"Lot of MoUs, outcomes expected": Indian envoy to Japan ahead of PM Modi visit

Tokyo [Japan], August 28 (ANI): India's Ambassador to Japan, Sibi George, on Thursday said that several important Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) are expected to be signed, and outcome documents will be released during the 15th India-Japan Annual Summit during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Japan.
George, in a conversation with ANI, stated that this visit is expected to give new momentum to the India-Japan relationship over the next decade, built on a solid foundation of political, economic, and people-to-people ties.
"This is not the first time they have met. The Honourable Prime Minister has met Prime Minister Ishiba on two previous occasions, at the Laos Summit and during the G7 Summit in Canada. This is the first visit of the Prime Minister since Prime Minister Ishiba assumed office. This is an important annual summit, and as I mentioned, we have a series of important outcomes which we are working on during this visit," he said.
PM Modi is set to visit Japan on August 29-30, 2025, at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. This visit marks the 15th India-Japan Annual Summit, where the two leaders will discuss various aspects of their strategic partnership.
George said that there will be several MoUs to be signed during the visit.
"I'm very happy to note that we will have a great visit, which will cover the entire spectrum of our relationships, giving new momentum to our relationship for the next 10 years. There will be a lot of MOUs which will be signed, very important MOUs will be signed and very important outcome documents will be released," he said.
said that every corner of Japan has an Indian touch, which shows the nature of the relationship between the two countries.
India and Japan have an excellent relationship. We have an excellent political relationship, business relationship, and of course, people-to-people connections. If you go to this country, any part of this country, you will see an India connect, any part of this country," he said.
He further told ANI that in 2014, Prime Minister Modi and then-Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe signed an agreement that established a strategic and global partnership between the two countries.
"We have a very solid base on which to build our relationship. Ten years ago, in 2014, the Honourable Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, and the then Prime Minister of Japan, Mr Abe, entered into an agreement establishing a special strategic and global partnership for India-Japan relations," he said.
"We have, in the last more than 10 years, been working towards building that partnership, and we can see that there is significant progress in every element of that relationship, at both the bilateral and plurilateral levels," he added.
George noted that the bilateral ties between the two nations have improved over the years.
"In the bilateral level, we have very good political relationship. We have seen how our economic relationship has transformed over the years. And, of course, this year we are celebrating as the India-Japan Year of Science, Technology, and Innovation Exchanges. So we have been working on each of these elements," he said.
He further stated that this visit is a means to take stock of the relations.
"And this is the time to take a review, a review of the progress we have made, and to come up with a roadmap to take the relationship further to the next higher level in the coming 10 years. So this visit to the annual summit is a great occasion to review that relationship and also take it to a new, higher level of partnership," he said.
The Quad grouping, comprising India, Japan, Australia, and the US, will be a significant topic of discussion. Ambassador Sibi George emphasised that the Quad has made significant progress since its inception in 2004 and has a concrete agenda for promoting peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.
"India's special strategic and global partnership has the entire spectrum of relationships. It is not only bilateral, but it is also plurilateral and multilateral. So in the plurilateral framework, QUAD is an important framework, an important group of four like-minded countries coming together with concrete, positive proposals to build a relationship for the peace, stability and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region and beyond," he said.
The summit will discuss the geopolitical situation in the Indo-Pacific region, including the Quad's role in promoting peace and stability
"So when two important leaders of Indo-Pacific, India and Japan, meet, particularly in this geopolitical situation, they will talk about the entire spectrum of geopolitical issues. And of course, QUAD is a very important topic that will be covered in the discussions," he said. (ANI)