In a major departure from the conventional diplomatic dynamics of New Delhi, for the maiden time a high-stake bilateral summit will be hosted in Guwahati. With this the state of Assam arrives at the epicentre of India’s foreign policy. Prime Minister of Japan Sanae Takaichi is set to land in Assam in the month of July for the annual Indo-Japan Summit. While New Delhi has always considered diversifying foreign policy activities beyond New Delhi, hosting Indo-Japan summit in Assam is a vital strategic calculation, as it provides a renewed momentum to India’s “Act East Policy”.
Indo-Japan Summit in Assam: An impetus for development & economic prosperity
Northeastern states are deemed as a gateway to connect with the Southeast Asian economies. The 7 sisters act as a frontier to accelerate business, investment, trade and other partnerships between India and Southeast Asia. Thus, hosting Indo-Japan Summit in Assam, will help to further reinvigorate trade, infrastructure and investment links between Japan and other Southeast Asian economies & the Northeastern states. This will indirectly furnish the developmental discourses of Assam and other Northeastern states.
The high-stake bilateral summit hosted in Assam, will pitch the state and the region as a potential ground for investment. The vast resources of the states, skilled youth power and other developmental metrics will help to attract credible foreign investment that will in turn help to seal development and economic prosperity in the region. Solid trade link between Northeast and Japan or other Southeast Asian economies will help for swift, time-effective and cost-effective trade.
Thus, the merits of hosting a high-stake Indo-Japan bilateral summit in the Northeastern state of Assam is multifaceted. It will not just take foreign policy discourse to every nook and corner of the country and create awareness among the people about the nation’s strategic trajectory, but also helps to flow developmental catalysts into the region.
The Indo-Japan summit in Guwahati will also help realise the vision of the PM Modi government regarding revolutionising Assam and other Northeastern states as an infrastructure, connectivity, industrial, technology and business hub. The Indo-Japan Summit will help carve the path in this direction, as it tends to attract huge investments to Assam and beyond.
PM Sanae Takaichi’s maiden visit to India
This will be the first-ever visit of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to India, after being elected to the apex position of Japan. She will be accompanied by more than 50 business leaders. The high-level Japanese delegation is expected to include Suzuki Motor President Toshihiro Suzuki, Executives from trading houses such as Itochu and Toyota Motor’s trading arm, Toyota Tsusho, will also be part of the delegation.
Bilateral discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi are expected to extend beyond traditional sectors such as infrastructure and connectivity. Semiconductors, advanced technology, electronics manufacturing and supply-chain resilience are likely to be featured on the agenda. Officials also reiterate that the summit could unbox fresh opportunities in manufacturing, technology, clean energy and regional connectivity projects across the Northeast, while positioning Assam as an emerging destination for high-value investments.
Japan hitherto has certain projects running in Assam and other Northeastern states which is predominantly related to infrastructure and connectivity, which will help reduce travel time to the Southeast Asian countries. During former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to India in 2023, Tokyo unveiled the ‘Bay of Bengal–Northeast India Industrial Value Chain Concept’. The idea is to connect Northeast India more closely with the Southeast Asian supply chains, thus turning the region into a manufacturing and logistics hub.
However, with the latest summit, the New Delhi-Tokyo partnership in the Northeastern states is said to expand to other realms as well. Indian companies such as Tata, Reliance are opening major industrial corridors in Assam. This includes semiconductor assembly units by Tata Group investments in data centres by Reliance and the Adani group’s investments in the power sector.
This will act as a foundation to attract further investment from Japanese companies’ investment into Assam, which will strengthen the scope of the Indian market and connect them more rigorously with the emerging economies of Southeast Asia. From the security perspective, greater India-Japan partnership in the Northeastern region, helps to work towards a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific paradigm and consolidate regional stability & collective security against other aggressors.
Hence, with the annual Indo-Japan summit in Guwahati, Assam and the entire resource rich Northeast region, will gain spotlight in the global diplomatic and strategic map. Japan will emerge as the key developmental partner in Northeast India.
