"Japan's defence transformation reshapes India-Japan strategic partnership prospects"
Special Strategic and Global Partnership
the highest tier of India-Japan bilateral relationship, elevated in 2014.
ACSA (Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement)
enables logistical military support exchange between Indian and Japanese armed forces.
India and Japan share one of Asia's most consequential bilateral relationships, formally elevated to a 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership' in 2014. The partnership rests on shared democratic values, rule-of-law commitments, and a mutual interest in a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific order. Japan has historically been one of India's largest Official Development Assistance (ODA) partners, financing landmark infrastructure such as the Delhi Metro and the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor through concessional loans. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA, 2011) governs bilateral trade and investment, while the Annual Summit mechanism — alternating between New Delhi and Tokyo — ensures sustained leadership-level engagement.
On the security side, the institutional architecture has deepened steadily. The Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) enables logistical military support between the two forces. Joint exercises span all three services: Dharma Guardian (Army), JIMEX (Navy), and Shinyuu Maitri (Air Force). A 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue — involving foreign and defence ministers — provides a structured forum for strategic coordination. Both nations are also founding members of the Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) alongside the United States and Australia, which has evolved from post-tsunami humanitarian coordination into a substantive forum addressing maritime security, critical technology supply chains, and regional stability.
Japan's post-war security posture was long defined by constitutional restraint under Article 9 of its constitution, which renounced war and prohibited maintaining war potential. For decades, defence spending was capped near 1 per cent of GDP, arms exports were prohibited, and the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) operated within narrow political constraints — a bargain in which Tokyo concentrated on economic reconstruction while relying on the United States for security.
Japan's strategic transformation, accelerating since the 2022 National Security Strategy, represents the most significant shift in its defence posture since the post-war settlement. Tokyo has set a target of raising defence-related spending to approximately 2 per cent of GDP by 2027, a threshold it has already begun approaching ahead of schedule through supplementary budgets. More consequentially, Japan is acquiring long-range 'counterstrike' capabilities — including American Tomahawk cruise missiles — and developing indigenous long-range strike weapons, fundamentally altering the defensive-only doctrine that governed the SDF for decades.
Parallel changes are reshaping Japan's defence industrial base. Tokyo has revised its Three Principles on Transfer of Defence Equipment and Technology (post-2015), progressively easing restrictions on arms exports. The new Official Security Assistance (OSA) programme enables Japan to provide military equipment to friendly countries — a capability previously unavailable. …
India is a member of which among the following?
1.Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
2.Association of South-East Asian Nations
3.East Asia Summit
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Consider the following statements about India-Japan defence cooperation:
1.The Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) enables logistical military support between Indian and Japanese forces.
2.'Dharma Guardian' is the name of the India-Japan bilateral naval exercise.
3.The UNICORN project is the first India-Japan bilateral defence co-development initiative.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Which of the following correctly describes Japan's 'Official Security Assistance (OSA)' programme?
With reference to Japan's defence policy reforms announced in its 2022 National Security Strategy, consider the following:
1.Japan set a target of raising defence-related spending to approximately 2 per cent of GDP.
2.Japan is acquiring long-range 'counterstrike' capabilities including Tomahawk cruise missiles.
3.Japan's constitution was formally amended to permit the acquisition of offensive weapons.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
The Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) originally emerged as a coordination mechanism following which event?
Consider the following pairs of India-Japan joint military exercises and the service branch they involve:
1.Dharma Guardian — Indian Army and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
2.JIMEX — Indian Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
3.Shinyuu Maitri — Indian Air Force and Japan Air Self-Defense Force
How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
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