India and Japan have agreed to cooperate in a number of telecommunications and IT-related areas after a recent ministerial meeting.
As the result of the meeting – widely reported in the Indian press – India and Japan have together finalised the text of a cybersecurity agreement that will promote cooperation in key areas such as 5G networks and artificial intelligence.
The announcement of the agreement followed the 13th India-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Japanese counterpart Motegi Toshimitsu in Tokyo.
According to a statement from India’s Ministry of External Affairs the agreement promotes cooperation in capacity building, research and development, and security and resilience in the areas of critical information infrastructure, 5G, Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), among others.
At a time when the involvement of China in 5G rollout both in India and internationally is in doubt this announcement will undoubtedly be of interest to Indian operators and hardware and software groups with a potential stake in the 5G sector.
Inevitably the talks had a number of other focuses, including maritime security, trade and investment, manufacturing, connectivity and infrastructure. However, it is the 5G agreement that has caught the eye of many observers in the telecommunications sector.
That said, we may have to wait for more detail on what this means for 5G in India, where the long-delayed spectrum auctions should be happening next year.
