India-Japan defence ties are soaring but high-profile deals unlikely

The US-2i aircraft and the Soryu class project are indicative of a structural limitation in the India-Japan defence relationship

The India-Japan defence relationship is soaring, but high-profile deals like the US-2i Aircraft and Soryu class submarines are unlikely to come to fruition anytime soon, argues this writer in today's BS Special.
 

Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to New Delhi last week evoked much enthusiasm in India’s strategic community. From defence and dual-use technologies to counter-terrorism, connectivity, infrastructure creation in the Northeast, and a willingness to cooperate in Asia and Africa, India and Japan took their bilateral cooperation forward in a number of crucial areas, aligning New Delhi’s Act East Policy with Japan’s 'Free and Open Asia-Pacific Strategy' in