The Japanese Defence Ministry announced Monday that Japan and India have kicked off their first-ever joint fighter jet drill near Tokyo, in their latest effort to bolster defence ties as they face China's growing military power in the Indo-Pacific region.
Four F-2 and four F-15 fighters from Japan's Air Self-Defence Force are expected to join the 11-day air combat training through Jan 26 around Hyakuri Air Base in Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast of Tokyo, according to the ministry. From the Indian Air Force, four Su-30MKI fighters, two C-17 transport aircraft and an IL-78 aerial refueling tanker are taking part, the ministry said, according to Japan's Kyodo News Agency.
The exercise had been postponed owing to the coronavirus pandemic that began in early 2020, after it was first agreed between the foreign and defence ministers of the two countries at their inaugural "two-plus-two" security meeting in New Delhi in November 2019.
India is the fifth country with which Japan has hosted such a bilateral exercise after the United States, Australia, Britain and Germany, according to the Japanese Defence Ministry.
Japan and India form part of a four-way security framework known as the Quad, which also involves the United States and Australia. The grouping is seen as a counterweight to China in the region.
