Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera met his Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman from August 19-21. The visit was aimed at strengthening military cooperation in the maritime space and discussing the possibility of joint military exercises between their land and air forces, in addition to the ongoing naval exercises. They also reaffirmed that India and Japan are enhancing cooperative research in defence equipment and technology.
After his stop in India, Minister Onodera will visit Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port, which has been under a 99-year lease to a Chinese operator since June 30, 2018.