New Delhi [India], August 28 (ANI): Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday shared reflections on his 'highly productive' four-day official visit to Japan, highlighting the expanding economic partnership between India and Japan and the focus on emerging sectors such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, clean energy and robotics.

In a post on X, Goyal, who visited Japan from August 24 to August 27, shared a link to his Substack, saying, 'Four Days, Three Cities, and a Partnership Coming of Age. (India-Japan) I have shared on Substack some reflections on my highly productive visit to Japan and the road ahead for the India-Japan partnership.'

https://x.com/PiyushGoyal/status/2092929977272381865

In his Substack post, Goyal said the nature of the longstanding India-Japan friendship was changing, with the economic relationship moving beyond the traditional model of Japanese capital and technology and India's market and talent pool.

'India and Japan have been friends for a very long time. What is changing is the nature of that friendship,' Goyal wrote.

'For decades, our economic relationship was built on a familiar template: Japanese capital and technology, Indian market and talent pool. Suzuki, Honda, the Delhi Metro, the Dedicated Freight Corridor. Enormously valuable, and India is grateful for all of it. But that template is now too small for what both countries need,' he wrote.

Goyal said his discussions during the visit focused not only on manufacturing but also on broader issues of economic security and strategic cooperation.

'The conversations I had last week were not about factories alone. They were about economic security. Resilient supply chains that do not break the next time the world does. Semiconductors. Artificial intelligence. Clean energy. Defence-linked manufacturing. Space. Robotics for ageing societies,' he wrote.

He said the areas of cooperation form part of what India and Japan are calling the India-Japan Next Generation Economic Partnership, stressing that it was more than a slogan. 'This is what we are calling the India-Japan Next Generation Economic Partnership, and it is not a slogan,' Goyal wrote.

Goyal also highlighted the investment target set by the two countries during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Japan in 2025.

'During Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Japan in 2025, the two countries set a target of JPY 10 trillion in Japanese private investment in India over the next decade. Everything we did this week was in service of that number,' he said.

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday concluded his four-day visit to Japan, saying the trip generated strong interest among Japanese businesses and also produced early investment outcomes, including a potential robotics manufacturing investment in India.

Speaking to ANI as his visit concluded, Goyal said there was 'very good excitement in Japan' and highlighted the participation of more than 200 people from India and the global industry in the visit.

'I saw very good excitement in Japan. I have had many good meetings. More than 200 people from India, from the world of industry, came with me. They also have many business-to-business connections,' Goyal said.

The Minister said the visit was not limited to discussions, with business-to-business engagements already beginning to translate into investment opportunities.

He gave the example of the robotics sector, saying that a company he had spoken to in Tokyo on Monday had, by Thursday, identified an Indian company for investment and manufacturing robots in India.

'I was talking to a company in robotics on Monday in Tokyo, and today in Osaka, they have identified a company in India to invest in and make robots in India,' Goyal said.

'So, the results are also coming along with it, and a lot of potential has been seen,' he added.

Goyal said the broader possibilities emerging from India-Japan economic engagement were significant.

'The possibilities are limitless. We have to give shape to the industrial world of India,' he said.

The Minister had travelled to Japan from August 24 to August 27, leading a nearly 200-member business delegation as India sought to strengthen trade and investment ties with Japan.

The visit came as India and Japan seek to build on their economic relationship, with 2026 designated as the 'India-Japan Year of Shared Horizons' to mark 75 years of diplomatic relations.

The Minister said the strong response from Japanese businesses and the early movement in areas such as robotics showed the potential for the relationship to move beyond traditional trade towards investment, technology and manufacturing partnerships. (ANI)