India-Japan Economic Forum

On August 29, 2025, Prime Minister Ishiba attended the India-Japan Economic Forum, held in Tokyo.

The Prime Minister Ishiba said in his speech:

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Namaskar. It is a great pleasure to welcome Prime Minister Modi to Japan and host the India-Japan Economic Forum together today. As mentioned earlier, Japan and India are strategic partners that share universal values such as freedom, democracy, and the rule of law, and we have fostered bilateral friendship and trust for many years. Our economic relations are expanding significantly, as Japanese technologies and India’s excellent human resources and massive market complement one another. Many Japanese companies play a role in ‘Make in India,’ and our bilateral cooperation extends across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, Africa, and even Europe. The conclusion of multiple memoranda of cooperation among companies from the two countries today demonstrates Japan’s resolve to invest further in India and strengthen collaboration. It also shows that our efforts to build resilient supply chains centered on the two countries are progressing steadily. I am truly honored to have the opportunity to be here with Prime Minister Modi to witness this moment. We wish to further develop bilateral cooperation toward the future. As we embark on that effort, I would like to mention three points regarding key initiatives to this end.

The first is the ‘promotion of people-to-people exchanges,’ which forms the foundation of the efforts. I visited Varanasi, a site symbolizing the culture of India, six years ago. The people I met there were filled with hope for the future. The energy of India’s growth was overwhelming. In my home prefecture of Tottori, the Sanin-India Association engages in a joint effort with Shimane Prefecture to work together with government, industry, and the Kerala chamber of commerce and industry, serves as a bridge between personal networks in both countries, and adds new vigor to regional revitalization. I believe that expanding these types of human-resource exchanges is the key to further enriching the future of Japan and India.

The second is the ‘fusion of technologies and markets.’ Under Prime Minister Modi’s ‘Self-Reliant India’ to achieve an autonomous economy, Japanese technologies have built a solid track record in fields that support the economic foundation. With the shared goal of ‘Japan’s Shinkansen bullet trains running on Indian soil,’ a large number of companies are joining forces to build the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail. In Mumbai, Sumitomo Realty & Development cooperates with the state government and pushes ahead with development projects around stations. In the automobile field, where Japan excels, Multi Suzuki India has gained a dominant share in India’s market since its entry into the country 40 years ago. Suzuki and Toyota are forging ahead with new large-scale investments in India. We are also seeing new initiatives emerge. One is the development of biofuel-compatible vehicles, a potential game-changer in achieving decarbonization. The introduction of biofuel has generated a large demand for biofuel and will contribute to the development of rural areas of the country. Efforts to expand into the global market are also underway. Suzuki and Isuzu conduct product development based in India and export over 300,000 vehicles from the country. This powerfully embodies the philosophy of ‘Make in India for the World.’

The last point is our cooperation in semiconductors and other critical technology fields. In the semiconductor area, under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, efforts are aiming to turn India into a future semiconductor design and manufacturing hub. Tokyo Electron, Renesas Electronics, FUJIFILM, and other companies in Japan’s semiconductor industry have actively contributed to this effort through local investments and other initiatives. In the battery area, a delegation of over 30 companies from Japan visited India for a business matching event that brought together a total of 70 Japanese and Indian companies. We have already seen active discussions geared toward collaboration, and I sincerely look forward to future progress. Furthermore, in various areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), space, and clean energy, the Japan-India relationship has made significant progress by leveraging India’s growing market. As the world economy faces mounting uncertainty, building resilient supply chains with trusted partners and ensuring economic security are essential for further economic growth. The Japanese and Indian industrial circles have both already held discussions on concrete cooperation, and a Joint Action Plan, formulated through cooperation among the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and industrial communities of both countries, was announced yesterday. It is my sincere hope that Japan and India, countries with unwavering friendship and trust, will advance these types of initiatives.

As I have stated above, the enormous growth potential between Japan and India continues to expand. Needless to say, the driving force for realizing that potential will be the members of the business community. Together with the government of India, we, the government of Japan, will steadily support your progress. We deeply appreciate your cooperation. Dhanyawad.”