PM Modi meets Japanese counterpart Yoshihide Suga ahead of Quad meeting

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Yoshihide Suga met here on Thursday to discuss ways to further cement the bilateral strategic ties ahead of the first in-person Quad meeting to be hosted by US President Joe Biden.

Modi and Suga spoke in April this year and the two leaders underscored the importance of working together to create resilient, diversified and trustworthy supply chains, ensuring reliable supply of critical materials and technologies, and developing new partnerships in manufacturing and skill development to deal with the crisis.

On his phone call with Modi in April, the Japanese leader had tweeted "we confirmed that we will work in close collaboration to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and had fruitful discussions on regional issues and Japan-India cooperation in order to realise a Free and Open Indo-Pacific." They also highlighted the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) project as a shining example of their cooperation and welcomed the steady progress in its execution.

Suga had called off a scheduled visit to India in April end in view of the coronavirus situation.

Speaking after virtually inaugurating a Japanese Zen garden and Kaizen Academy set up at the premises of the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) in June, Modi had described Suga as a very straight-forward person.

"Prime Minister Suga and I believe that during the time of this COVID-19 pandemic crisis, the Indo-Japanese friendship and our partnership have become even more relevant for global stability and prosperity. Today, when we are facing several global challenges, it is the need of the hour that our friendship and relationship get stronger day by day," Modi had said.

He said efforts like setting up of the Kaizen Academy are a beautiful reflection of this relationship.

Modi said the launch of the Zen garden and Kaizen Academy is a "symbol of the spontaneity and modernity of India-Japan relations".