No.46 The Ties That Bind: Part 2 (2000-2024) Japan–South Asia Relations and Development Cooperation Partnership in the Twenty-first Century and in the Era of the Indo-Pacific

Following the lowest point in Japan-South Asia ties, particularly with the two key countries (India and Pakistan) in 1998, the region has emerged as crucial for Japan through the twenty-first century, especially from the 2010s, with India and Bangladesh as the top two recipients of Japan’s total ODA. Three key factors have influenced Japan’s shift in aid focus to South Asia: a genuine desire for South Asia’s social and economic development, Japan’s own growing and expanding commercial interest, and, particularly from the 2010s, the pursuit of Japan’s broader strategic objectives. This is why the levels and nature of Japan’s ODA have varied across time and countries in the region. In the current context of Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) foreign policy objectives, and as China’s rise contributes to transforming global and regional orders, the South Asian region has become strategically important to Japan. It will likely be a focus of Japan’s ODA for the foreseeable future.

Keywords: Japan, South Asia, ODA, Aid, Development Cooperation Partnership, Strategic Aid, Indo-Pacific