India–Japan Maritime Cooperation and the Developmental Priorities of Northeast India

In recent years, growing strategic convergence in the Indo-Pacific region has driven India-Japan maritime cooperation. From a security perspective, maritime security cooperation between New Delhi and Tokyo aims to secure sea lanes of communication and strategically balance Chinas expanding influence in the region through mechanisms such as the QUAD. Beyond security-driven initiatives, strengthening port-led development and enabling multimodal connectivity are dimensions of India-Japan maritime cooperation that are gaining traction. This is clearly visible in the Bay of Bengal subregion, where expanding multimodal connectivity to seaports offers huge opportunities for the landlocked regions such as Northeast India. Thus, India-Japan maritime cooperation offers an alternative to other regional connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway project, which has faced prolonged delays due to structural and geopolitical hurdles in the fragile areas of Indias Northeast and Southeast Asia. This study argues that the territorial inclusion through multimodal connectivity initiatives in India-Japan maritime cooperation could redefine the developmental discourse of landlocked Northeast India.