Overview

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for Japan for the 15th India–Japan Annual Summit on August 29–30 before heading to Tianjin for the SCO leaders’ meeting on August 31–September 1.
• The Prime Minister’s Office said Modi plans bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the SCO sidelines, while China noted participation by over 20 leaders and heads of 10 international organisations.
• Outcomes in Tokyo are expected to include an upgrade of the 2008 security declaration, a new economic security framework on resilient supply chains and critical minerals, and higher Japanese investment targets reported at roughly $68 billion over the next decade.
• Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will ride a Shinkansen to Sendai, where Modi will visit a semiconductor factory and meet business leaders, with officials projecting around 100 B2B agreements.
• India’s ambassador to Japan said the Mumbai–Ahmedabad bullet train will begin operations by 2027, a claim that contrasts with earlier reports of 2028–29 completion and plans for donated E5 and E3 trains by 2026.