In a remarkable development in the Indo-Pacific political puzzle, on August 20 this year Japan and India held a 2 2 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi in which the foreign and defense ministers of both countries took part.

It was the third meeting of its kind, the first of which took place in New Delhi in November 2019. The original decision to create this bilateral platform was taken following a series of reciprocal visits by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart at the time, Shinzo Abe.

The political background in the region

This decision was a landmark event in a long process of rapprochement in a wide range of fields between two of the three Asian powers (the third great Asian power being China) which currently, to a large extent, determine the development of the situation both on the Asian continent and in the Indo-Pacific region as a whole. It is important to note that in the political and strategic triangle formed by China, India and Japan the latter two “corners” are opposed (let us use that term, at least for the time being) to the first, albeit to different degrees.

Although, let us emphasize it once again, the foreign policies of India and Japan are still developing, and their anti-China component will not necessarily prevail even in the short term. A lot will depend on the development of the political situation within both India and Japan. Today, this factor is particularly relevant for the latter country.

Be that as it may, the anti-China factor component in the foreign policies of both countries is still (as we have already noted) manifesting itself in various ways. Particularly in the form of the New Delhi meeting discussed in this article. Once again, the very existence of the 2 2 Ministerial Dialogue format is an illustration of the high level of trust between India and Japan. The fact that relations between India and Japan have continued to develop in many areas since the second meeting (three years ago) is an important testimony to this progress.

Another equally important sign of the good relations between the two countries is the fact that both are members of the Quad configuration, which also includes the US and Australia. At the end of July this year in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, on the sidelines of a regular summit of the ASEAN regional grouping, the foreign ministers of the Quad member held their most recent meeting, which resulted in the........

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