Newsfrom Japan
New Delhi, June 29 (Jiji Press)–Japan and India share key principles and goals in promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific, Ashok Kumar Chawla, a former adviser on Japan at India’s External Affairs Ministry, said in an interview.
India has rolled out a maritime vision, Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions, or MAHASAGAR, Chawla said.
He said that Japan, for its part, values the rule of law and freedom of navigation based on the FOIP concept and has strengthened economic security and human resources development in recent years.
MAHASAGAR and FOIP are complementary to each other as the overlap between them is expanding, he said, adding that the two concepts have been converging while developing independently.
He said both Japan and India remain highly dependent on the Middle East for energy supply and that the stability of sea lanes, including the Strait of Hormuz, is in the vital national interest of the two countries.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
