India–Japan relations are traditionally and religiously been strong for Decades of decades because India and Japan have been engaged in many cultural exchanges, for example of Buddhism, which spreads from India to Japan via China and Korea.
India-Japan is connected through Historic Contacts, and many more…..
Historic contacts
The First Historic Contact between India-Japan was from Todai-Ji Temple in Nara, in which the eye-opening statue of Lord Buddha was created by an
India Monk, Bodhisena, in 752 Ad.
Hinduism in Japan
Hinduism involves indirectly information about Japanese Culture. How I know this- because most Indian Buddhist and traditions spread in Japan from China via Korean Peninsula in the 6th century.
Seven Deities of Fortune in Japan originated from Hindu deities:
Some Japanese God comparing India God, Benzaitensama (Saraswati Mata), Bishamon (Kuber), Daikokuten (Bholenath/Mahakala/Shiva), and Kichijoten (Lakshmi Mata). Also, Benzaitennyo/Sarasvati and Kisshoutennyo/Laxmi, the Hindu goddess Mahakali is nipponized as the Japanese goddess Daikokutennyo, and she is only counted among Japan’s Seven Luck Deities. Daikokutennyo is also mentioned in the Lotus Sutra.
Yama the god of death in India also in their Buddhist form as Enma. Also, the People of Japan have written books on the worship of Hindu gods.
The Japanese are guided and shared by a common cultural tradition of Buddhism and follow ideals of Tolerance, Pluralism, Open Societies.
India and Japan have a strong relationship with official development assistance(ODA). In 2017, bilateral trade between India and Japan have around US$18 billion.
What Will Help With Meet Of India-Japan
Control From China: After a security policy from China between India-Japan with PM MODI, and Shinzo Abe in 2014.
Technologies: Shinzo Abe partnership India-Japan to put together digital research in technologies from AI and 5G to the Internet of Things and space research.
Economic: Infrastructure of New Delhi and Tokyo. Japan Economically supports ‘MAKE IN INDIA’. Japan has already invested around $34 billion in the Indian economy over the last two decades. Japan is India’s 12th trading partner, Shinzo Abe, wrote in his book, Utsukushii Kuni E
(Toward a Beautiful Country), said that in the next 10 years, Japan-India relations may be overtaken Japan-U.S. and Japan-China relations.
Indian PM and Japan PM in August 2000 meet in India and sign an agreement to “Japan-India Global Partnership in the 21st Century.”
Then Indian PM Vajpayee Jee visit Japan in December 2001 and issued the “Japan-India Joint Declaration.” then Japan PM Koizumi visited India and signed the Joint Statement “Japan-India Partnership”.
Japan Also signed an agreement with India- with a low-interest loan worth US$4.5 billion to construct a railway project between Delhi and Mumbai. Then in March 2006, Japan was the third-largest investor in India.
After this to have strong relations, japan announce that if any, Japanese coming to India for business or work will be happily granted a three-year visa and a similar process will be followed by Japan also.
India and Japan signed an agreement in December 2015 to build a bullet train line between Mumbai and Ahmedabad using Japan’s Shinkansen technology, with a loan from Japan of £12bn. Also, japan funded a 0.1% interest rate loan for four-fifths of projects to India t maintain a good relationship.
Japan’s Yoshihide Suga is willing to make New India a dream to reality.
During Indian Independence Movement
When India was under British Colony, relationships between India-Japan were boosted by Anglo-Japanese Alliance.
India-Japan grows closer on Pan-Asian Ideals. During Indian Independence, many independence activists escaped to Japan like Rash Behari Bose who makes better Indo-Japanese relations. Japanese supported the Indian independence movement. A. M and also supports India in the Second World War by attacking British, Dutch, and American possessions in Asia.
India-Japan Before World War II
Before World War on 5th January 1934, Both Countries signed the “Indo-JapaneseTrade Agreement “.
India-Japan During World War II
In World War 2 million Indians Army, Freedom Fighter, etc Fight in the war; many Fights against the Japanese who briefly occupied British Burma and reached the Indian border and after this some 67,000 Indian soldiers were captured by the Japanese when Singapore surrendered in 1942, and most of them became part of the Japanese-sponsored Indian National Army (INA).
Indian National Army
Subhas Chandra Bose, Who is one of the founders of Azad Hind Fauz, which aimed to end the British Rule in India, Japanese helped to form Azad Hind Fauj which is also known as INA(INDIA NATIONAL ARMY).
INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY(INA) was mainly composed of former prisoners of war who were captured by the Japanese when Singapore fall.
INA was mainly formed to collapse British rule in India. The Japanese Government fully supports INA and the Indian Independence League.
Japanese forces also include INA force in many battles, like at the U Go Offensive at Manipur.
India-Japan Modern relations
During the period of the International Military Tribunal, the Indian Justice Radhabinod Pal was in favor of Japan and for this, he became popular in Japan, and still, Radhabinod Pal is remembered in Japan Today. He shows the symbol of the close relationship between India-Japan.
And for this favor Japan build a Monument honoring Radhabinod Pal, at Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, Japan.
And in favor of Japan, India refused to attend the San Francisco Peace Conference in 1951 because of USA limitations imposed upon Japanese sovereignty.
After this India-Japan together establish Diplomatic, trade, economic, and technical relations. India helped Japan to recover from World War II devastation, and in favor of India, Japan started providing yen loans to India in 1958.
To make a strong bond between India and Japan, Japan built a memorial to Subhas Chandra Bose in the Renkōji Temple, Tokyo, and Subhas Chandra Bose’s ashes are stored in the temple in a golden pagoda to give him respect from Japan.
Narendra Modi Indian PM visited Japan in 2014. He had a good relationship with Japan PM Shinzo Abe and establish a “Special Strategic Global Partnership”.
After that Modi again visited Japan in November 2016, and signed the “Agreement for Cooperation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy”, in this japan will provide nuclear reactors, fuel, and technologies to India. And also signed an agreement for skill development, cooperation in space, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, road transport, train transport, and many more for urban developemnt.
India-Japan Military Exercise
India-Japan Having their Military exercises from an external enemy. Japan-India Maritime Navy Warships exercise in 2oo7 at Malabar Indian Western Cost. This is a multilateral exercise making close military relations between India-Japan.
Japan PM welcomes Indian Defence Minister Tokyo Japan in September 2009, for close military ties. This meeting was for maintaining security, fighting international crime, terrorism, piracy & proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean.
India-Japan also had joint military exercises and co-operate on technology, on 22 October 2008.
The Indian Navy participate in Malabar Exercise with Japan and US navies, for shared perspectives on Indo-Pacific maritime security in July 2014.
India-Japan Cultural Relations
In Japan, Tokyo – Taimei Elementary School, India-Japan practiced music on Japanese Buddhism. This shows how close cultural relations India-Japan are. And In 2007 India-Japan celebrated and announced this year as the 50th anniversary Cultural Agreement.
There is one more Cultural Event as “NAMASTE INDIA FESTIVAL” which is the largest festival in the world. In 2916 Indian Government supports the Great East Japan Earthquake in Onagawa.
The Indian National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team first time for its overseas mission, the team conducted search and rescue operations for the missing families.
Osamu Tezuka is a writer, animator, cartoonist who wrote a biographical manga Buddha from 1972 to 1983 and also supports rebuilding Nalanda University which was the Learning Center for Buddhists in Bihar.
In 2005, Doraemon japan Cartoon was introduced in India and telecasted all over India, on Disney Channel and Hungama TV. Many More Animated cartoons were also introduced in India like the Pokemon Series, Crayon Shin-Chan, Dragon Ball, Ninja Hattori, etc. Also, in Indian theatres.
Also in Japan, Tamil movies are very popular and Rajnikanth is a very famous personality in Japan. Bollywood movies are also introduced in Japan.
Also, the Indian Yogi is one of the most famous characters in Japanese video games, like Street Fighter.
Also, Japan starting on 3 July 2014, has multiple entry visas for the short-term stay of Indian nationals.
India-Japan 2016 Nuclear Deal
As nuclear power country shows the power of that country and US is the most powerful country as it is having largest no of nuclear in the world. India is at 6th no in world.
Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi signed India-Japan nuclear energy deal with Shinzo Abe in November 2016. This takes around six years to negotiate, delayed in part by the 2011 Fukushima Nuclear Disaster. Japan signed this deal with a non-signatory of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
This deal helps India to support Nuclear reactors, Fuel, and New technologies India and this support of Japan helps India to build six nuclear reactors in Southern India increasing nuclear energy ten-fold by 2032.
How India-Japan Working On Developments
For Developments Narendra Modi Indian PM meets with Japan PM, Yoshinde Suga, in Washington DC, the USA on September 23, 2021.
And India-Japan starts a Coordination Forum(JICF) for the full development in North-Eastern Regions in August 2017 for strategic improving connectivity in Roads, Food Manufacturing and mainly focus on Organic Farming, Natural Disaster Management, and Tourism, etc.
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