Swaraj, Japanese foreign minister discuss bilateral ties

External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj on Thursday held a bilateral meeting with her Japanese countepart Taro Kono for discussing ways to strengthen bilateral ties between India and Japan.

Prior to this, Swaraj met the chairman of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Policy Research Council Fumio Kishida.

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar captured the moments of the meeting between the two leaders.

Earlier on Thursday, while addressing a gathering of Indian diaspora at the Vivekanand Cultural Centre in Tokyo, Swaraj lauded the contribution of the diaspora for strengthening the bond with Japan and creating a positive image about India in Japan.

"India-Japan relations are stronger than before, a major reason for this is Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi's and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's friendship. India's relations with Japan have strengthened under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi," Swaraj said.

The EAM reached Tokyo on Wednesday, on a three-day visit to attend the ninth India-Japan Strategic Dialogue with her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono.

The strategic dialogue between Swaraj and Kono is scheduled to take place today.