Kishida to Visit India from March 19 for Talks with Modi

Tokyo, March 10 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Friday that he will visit India from March 19 to meet with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi.

Kishida last visited India, this year's chair of the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies, in March 2022. Japan holds this year's presidency of the Group of Seven major countries.

"We, as this year's chairs (of the two groups), will exchange views to strengthen cooperation," Kishida told a liaison meeting between the Japanese government and the ruling camp of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito.

The Japanese and Indian leaders will "discuss a range of issues," including for realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a press conference Friday.

Before the trip to India, Kishida will hold a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during the latter's visit to Japan. On March 18, Japan and Germany will hold intergovernmental talks involving ministers as well as the leaders of the two countries, the first such meeting between them.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]