DEFENCE MINISTER Rajnath Singh had a telephone conversation with his Japanese counterpart Kishi Nobuo on Tuesday, during which the two leaders explored security relations between the two countries and rejected any effort to shift the status quo by coercion in the region – with a veiled reference to China.
They also addressed the Malabar naval exercise, which ended in November, and for the first time since 2007, all four participants of the Quadrilateral Security Dialog – India, Japan, the United States and Australia – participated.
The talk, another sign of strengthening the security relations between the two countries, comes in the light of an ongoing military standoff with China in eastern Ladakh.
Japan’s Defence Ministry claimed in its announcement that the two leaders “also exchanged views on regional situations, including the East China Sea and the South China Sea, and reiterated their continued close cooperation.” “In this sense, the ministers reiterated their intention to continue to share views in the light of the current events in the area and decided to send a clear message that they firmly condemn any effort to unilaterally alter the status quo through force or any act.
Singh tweeted, “India is committed to further increasing its commitment to Japan under the Special Strategic & Global Partnership Framework,” he said.
