New Delhi: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was accorded a ceremonial Guard of Honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed her for her first official visit to India.

The ceremonial reception marked the beginning of Takaichi's three-day visit, during which the two leaders are scheduled to hold bilateral talks and participate in the 16th India-Japan Annual Summit aimed at strengthening the Special Strategic and Global Partnership between the two countries.

PM Modi welcomes Japanese counterpart

Prime Minister Modi personally received Takaichi at Rashtrapati Bhavan before both leaders introduced members of their respective delegations.

Earlier, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh had welcomed the Japanese Prime Minister upon her arrival in New Delhi on Wednesday evening.

Following her arrival, PM Modi said he was delighted to host Takaichi on her maiden visit to India and looked forward to discussions covering bilateral cooperation as well as regional and global developments.

Focus on strategic partnership

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the visit marks another important milestone in advancing the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership.

The summit is expected to focus on expanding cooperation in economic security, resilient supply chains, defence, maritime security, emerging technologies, semiconductor collaboration, clean energy and investment.

Investment expected to feature prominently

Japanese officials indicated that private companies are expected to announce around 120 cooperation agreements worth nearly $12.5 billion during the summit, reflecting growing business confidence in India's economy.

More than 150 companies are also participating in the Japan-India Economic Forum, highlighting efforts to deepen commercial ties alongside government-level cooperation.

The visit comes as India and Japan continue expanding collaboration across strategic sectors amid evolving geopolitical and economic challenges in the Indo-Pacific region.