Army Chief on Japan visit, tests out tanks, military equipment

[Rangila]

Army Chief General Dalbir Singh, who is on a four day goodwill visit to Japan, has interacted with his counterparts in Tokyo and has been given a first-hand feel of Japanese military equipment, including a ride on a main battle tank.


Singh, who discussed issues of mutual concern pertaining to security and defence cooperation with top Japanese officials, is one of the senior most Indian military officials to visit the nation. India has been focusing on its military ties with Japan, with a possible first military deal for US 2 amphibious aircraft likely to be finalized shortly.


Singh was accorded a guard of honour in Tokyo by the Japanese Ground Self Defence Force(GSDF) and attended an official banquet hosted by General Kiyofumi Iwata, Chief of Staff of Japanese GSDF. Gen Dalbir Singh also visiting defence installations and institutions of the Japanese Self Defence Force, including Camp Narasino, Camp Simosizu, Japanese Air Defence School, Camp Fuji and Headquarters of Japanese Middle Army.


"India's relations with Japan have undergone a significant transformation since the establishment of the India-Japan Global partnership for the 21st Century in Aug 2000 and the enhancement of its status to a 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership' during the PM's visit to Japan in Sep 2014. Defence and Security Cooperation have emerged as a key component of this strategic partnership," an Army official said.

 

[Chanakyaa]

I love their LHDs and Soryu Class.

 

[fsayed]

India Japan must go in for jv in defence projects win win situation for both

 

[The Huskar]

Type 10 or even the older Type 90 is one hell of a tank.Better than the Russian T-90 junk.But sadly Japanese self exile policy won't let any of us get it.
Sigh.....what a waste

 

[Rangila]

.But sadly Japanese self exile policy won't let any of us get it.
Sigh.....what a waste

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lifted the prohibition on military exports last year, part of a loosening of restrictions on Japan’s military power that were put in place after its defeat in World War II.

Mr. Abe is counting on increased military-related trade to help cement ties with other countries in the region that share Japan’s wariness of China. Southeast Asian nations and India are high on the list of potential customers.

 

[The Huskar]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lifted the prohibition on military exports last year, part of a loosening of restrictions on Japan’s military power that were put in place after its defeat in World War II.

Mr. Abe is counting on increased military-related trade to help cement ties with other countries in the region that share Japan’s wariness of China. Southeast Asian nations and India are high on the list of potential customers.

Too much uncertainty on technology transfer and highly prohibitive end user clause.Turkey tried getting the Type 10 and ended up getting their hands burned.Even Australia is having second thoughts about Soryu class subs.

 

[Apoorv]

India has been focusing on its military ties with Japan with a possible first military deal for US 2 amphibious aircraft likely to be finalized shortly.

Any details about the aircraft??

 

[Rangila]

Too much uncertainty on technology transfer and highly prohibitive end user clause.Turkey tried getting the Type 10 and ended up getting their hands burned.Even Australia is having second thoughts about Soryu class subs.

Under the eased rules, Japan and Britain reached an agreement last July on joint development of defense equipment and rules on arms technology transfer. Japan has long prohibited the export of weapons to communist states, countries subject to arms embargoes under U.N. resolutions, and countries involved in international conflicts.

Meanwhile, this is from last month:

Japan has for the first time revealed additional details of its proposal to design and build submarines to replace Australia’s fleet of six Collins-class boats.

This week, the head of a high-powered Japanese delegation, speaking at this year’s Sea Power conference in Sydney, told local media that Japan would transfer 100 percent of the technology involved in building a larger version of Japan’s state-of-the-art 4,000-ton diesel-electric Soryu-class submarine to the Australian submariner community. “Our objective is to have everything available to transfer,” delegation head Masaki Ishikawa said.

 

[The Huskar]

Under the eased rules, Japan and Britain reached an agreement last July on joint development of defense equipment and rules on arms technology transfer. Japan has long prohibited the export of weapons to communist states, countries subject to arms embargoes under U.N. resolutions, and countries involved in international conflicts.

Meanwhile, this is from last month:

Japan has for the first time revealed additional details of its proposal to design and build submarines to replace Australia’s fleet of six Collins-class boats.

This week, the head of a high-powered Japanese delegation, speaking at this year’s Sea Power conference in Sydney, told local media that Japan would transfer 100 percent of the technology involved in building a larger version of Japan’s state-of-the-art 4,000-ton diesel-electric Soryu-class submarine to the Australian submariner community. “Our objective is to have everything available to transfer,” delegation head Masaki Ishikawa said.

If Australia can get Soryu tech then best of luck to them.But they must get it while Abe is in office.Anyone after him may not be the Article 9 buster that he was.

 

[SanjeevaniButi]

Under the eased rules, Japan and Britain reached an agreement last July on joint development of defense equipment and rules on arms technology transfer. Japan has long prohibited the export of weapons to communist states, countries subject to arms embargoes under U.N. resolutions, and countries involved in international conflicts.

Meanwhile, this is from last month:

Japan has for the first time revealed additional details of its proposal to design and build submarines to replace Australia’s fleet of six Collins-class boats.

This week, the head of a high-powered Japanese delegation, speaking at this year’s Sea Power conference in Sydney, told local media that Japan would transfer 100 percent of the technology involved in building a larger version of Japan’s state-of-the-art 4,000-ton diesel-electric Soryu-class submarine to the Australian submariner community. “Our objective is to have everything available to transfer,” delegation head Masaki Ishikawa said.

This is good news for India.

We need to get ToT for Soryu for Project 75 I............ 4000 Tons make it ideal.

 

[Rangila]

If Australia can get Soryu tech then best of luck to them.But they must get it while Abe is in office.Anyone after him may not be the Article 9 buster that he was.

Mitsubishi, Kawasaki, Hitachi, Toshiba and many other Japanese arms manufacturers are lobbying hard for export. Shinzo is a popular PM of Japan, and any forthcoming PM after him would not be able to drastically alter the status quo looking at the recession of Nippon. The Diet term is four years.

 

[The Huskar]

Mitsubishi, Kawasaki, Hitachi, Toshiba and many other Japanese arms manufacturers are lobbying hard for export. Shinzo is a popular PM of Japan, and any forthcoming PM after him would not be able to drastically alter the status quo looking at the recession of Nippon. The Diet term is four years.

70+ years of pacifist mindset is too hard to simply erase in one term.The current generation is born in times of peace and non alignment is paramount to them.I really hope all this talks of defence exports doesn't turn out to be just hot air.

 

[Rangila]

70+ years of pacifist mindset is too hard to simply erase in one term.The current generation is born in times of peace and non alignment is paramount to them.I really hope all this talks of defence exports doesn't turn out to be just hot air.

“By providing arms to these countries we can make money, we can balance China, and strengthen and institutionalize our partnerships and empower these countries. It’s a win-win-win situation,” Narushige Michishita, director of the Security and International Studies Program at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies, is quoted in Defense News as saying.

Exports are the stimulus that Japan needs in order to incentivize better performance by its arms manufacturers – a turnaround that will benefit not only Japan, but also Japan’s allies and partners. As the U.S. faces greater budgetary pressure to make do with less, Japan will have to work harder to prove that they are an ally worth defending – and such “proof” comes in the form of making a serious commitment to reciprocate U.S. efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region.

The whole gamut/spectrum is changing on this perspective in Japan. Thanks to China's tough South China Sea policy and their belligerence, coupled with periodic North Korean threats & Japan's alignment with the US - The situation is not the same as last few decades. Besides, the Japanese defense exports are based on 3 water tight principles (embedded in Diet laws) and (henceforth) conditional, not any Tom Dickens or Harry is going to walk away with Japanese arms just like that, as China does its business. Japan may not sell big ticket items to begin with, but the writing is on the wall for the change in their defense policy for sure.

 

[The Huskar]

The whole gamut/spectrum is changing on this perspective in Japan. Thanks to China's tough South China Sea policy and their belligerence, coupled with periodic North Korean threats & Japan's alignment with the US - The situation is not the same as last few decades. Besides, the Japanese defense exports are based on 3 water tight principles (embedded in Diet laws) and (henceforth) conditional, not any Tom Dickens or Harry is going to walk away with Japanese arms just like that, as China does its business. Japan may not sell big ticket items to begin with, but the writing is on the wall for the change in their defense policy for sure.

Japan is taking too much time to come out of the crib and frankly speaking India needs those now.After 20 years we will be self-reliant in military industrial complexes like Russia and may not need them.

 

[Rangila]

Japan is taking too much time to come out of the crib and frankly speaking India needs those now.After 20 years we will be self-reliant in military industrial complexes like Russia and may not need them.

Indian defense view on Soryu:

Indian Navy officials and submarine experts are also divided about whether the Soryu class could serve Indian Navy requirements.

Cost-wise it is comparable to the other subs. But the designed life of Japanese subs is only 20 years, which is much less than what the other subs are designed for."

Some officials also wondered whether the Soryu can fire Indian-made missiles.


According to a senior Japanese defense analyst, officially no talks were conducted on the issue during the meeting between the two defense ministers. While the Japanese side is aware of India's position and interest in Soyru-based technologies, Japan is taking a cautious approach to any additional deal with India because it is focused on finalizing the sale to New Delhi of some 15 to 18 ShinMaywa US-2 amphibious search-and-rescue planes before tackling new business.


"There are three reasons that make Japanese reluctance understandable," Patalano said. "The first is operational. The Soryu's design is maximized to favor longer patrols and operational flexibility [hence the larger size], both features being not particularly relevant to India's requirements. The second concerns the limited commercial advantage of this deal. Indian shipbuilding industry has limited capacity and a track record that is less than stellar. ... The third aspect concerns reputation. Japan is still learning its ropes in defense-related cooperation/sales, and an Indian experience might be problematic. If you're the new kid in town, you don't want your reputation to be tarnished before you have established it."


An Indian Navy official said that while the Soryu-class submarines are quieter and can take a heavier load, it is still not certain India would buy the heavier vessels.

"I do not see that [transfer of technology] as a problem since there are indicators that the Japanese would transfer the design to the Australian Navy," Ghosh said