India and Japan agreed to bolster security ties, including maritime cooperation, on Thursday following a meeting between their defence ministers in New Delhi.

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi held talks and signed a memorandum on maritime security cooperation, according to a joint statement.

Both countries are members of the Quad, a security grouping with the United States and Australia that is widely seen as a counterweight to China’s expanding presence in the Indian Ocean and the wider Indo-Pacific.

“The two ministers affirmed their commitment ... to further deepen defence cooperation to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the joint statement said.

“Such cooperation is vital not only to Japan and India, but also to the region and the international community.”

New Delhi has been seeking greater involvement from Tokyo, including investment and technology, to support India’s efforts to develop its domestic defence manufacturing industry.

The ministers said the two countries should explore joint development in naval shipbuilding and design, combining Japan’s technological expertise with India’s production capabilities under its “Make in India” initiative.

Koizumi’s visit comes after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted his Japanese counterpart Sanae Takaichi in July, when the two leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation on critical minerals, a sector dominated by China.

Following that meeting, Takaichi warned that Japan and India faced challenges including the “weaponisation of the economy and non-market policies and practices”.

China’s foreign ministry, commenting on Modi’s meeting with Takaichi, said international cooperation “should not target or harm the interests of third parties, let alone serve as a pretext for forming exclusive cliques or stoking confrontation”.