New Delhi: Japanese foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi and his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar launched new dialogues on artificial intelligence and critical minerals on Friday (January 16), while emphasising the need to keep the United States engaged in the Indo-Pacific even as questions swirl over Washington’s commitment to regional frameworks like the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue.The discussions took place as Motegi concluded his first overseas tour of 2026, which included visits to Israel, Qatar and the Philippines. The exchanges reflected a shared view in Tokyo and Delhi that continued US engagement remains central to regional stability, even as priorities appear to be shifting under President Donald Trump’s second term.“So, in order to have the engagement of the US in this region, we believe that Quad is a very important framework to facilitate such cooperation,” Japanese press secretary Toshihiro Kitamura told reporters on Friday.The emphasis on the US involvement came as there have been questions on its diminishing visibility in the Trump administration. While Secretary of State Marco Rubio has taken part in two Quad foreign minister’s meeting, President Trump has still now made no public reference to the Quad during his second term. A proposed Quad summit in India remains unscheduled despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation.External affairs minister S. Jaishankar, welcoming his Japanese counterpart, acknowledged their “obligation” as leading democracies to “shape the global order” in uncertain times. “In the current uncertain global situation, it’s even more important that we work closely towards shared strategic goals,” he said.The ministerial talks, which ran nearly two and a half hours, longer than scheduled, focused heavily on economic security, with both sides agreeing to establish new frameworks for cooperation on critical minerals, artificial intelligence and supply chain resilience.MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the two leaders “reviewed the multifaceted relationship” covering “supply chain resilience in critical sectors, investment, trade, technology, innovation, defence, people-to-people exchanges, and also our cultural ties.”The two countries agreed to launch three new dialogue mechanisms: an economic security dialogue at the official level, a private sector dialogue on economic security challenges, and a joint working group on critical minerals.“Both sides also decided to convene the joint working group on critical minerals under the economic security initiative to advance our collaboration in the fields of rare earths and critical minerals,” Jaiswal told reporters at the weekly MEA briefing.These build on commitments made during Modi’s August 2025 visit to Tokyo, when Japan pledged USD 67.9 billion in investments over the next decade.“Since current international society is facing very unstable situation because of the lack of stable supply chain, we have agreed upon to establish jointly resilient supply chain,” Kitamura explained at the press briefing.The ministers also launched the Japan-India AI Cooperation Initiative during the talks. “This initiative was announced by the two Prime Ministers and today the Ministers launched the AI Dialogue so as to give a coherent push to bilateral cooperation between the two countries in this particular sector,” Jaiswal said.Kitamura noted Tokyo’s appreciation for “Indian’s capacity and talent in the space of AI and science.” Japan expressed support for India’s upcoming AI Impact Summit next month, though Japanese participation remains uncertain given potential early elections.On the security front, Japan reiterated its commitment to transferring the Unified Complex Radio Antenna (UNICORN), an integrated communications system for naval vessels, to India.“We are now focusing on to complete this UNICORN project” as the first flagship defence equipment transfer, Kitamura said, adding that both defence authorities are in dialogue about future projects.The talks came against the backdrop of Japan’s own deepening security cooperation with the Philippines and South Korea, part of what Kitamura described as efforts to “mobilise bilateral, multilateral framework in order to keep the commitment of US side.”While Motegi and Jaishankar agreed on the importance of continuing Quad initiatives, no concrete plans emerged for the next summit. The absence of firm dates reflects broader concerns about the grouping’s future under Trump, who championed the Quad’s revival during his first term but has remained conspicuously silent about it since returning to office.Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who assumed office in October 2025, has sought to reassure partners of Tokyo’s commitment. In her first phone call with Modi following her taking office, she explicitly backed the Quad and the Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision. During Trump’s Japan visit in late October, she reiterated that FOIP remained central to her government’s foreign policy.Kitamura insisted Japan remains confident about US commitment. “At least for Japan’s view, we don’t worried about their commitment,” he said, citing Trump’s National Security Strategy document which describes the importance of US engagement in East and South Asia.He noted that Takaichi and Trump had confirmed their alliance commitment in telephone talks earlier this month, and that Motegi had briefed Indian counterparts on Japan’s efforts to maintain multiple frameworks, including Japan-Philippines-US and Japan-South Korea-US trilaterals, to keep Washington engaged.The talks covered a wide range of regional issues, though both sides remained circumspect about details. On Taiwan, he reiterated Japan’s position that cross-strait issues should be “resolved peacefully through dialogue,” while acknowledging rising tensions with China. “The relationship between Japan and China is now becoming more tense,” Kitamura acknowledged, noting Chinese rhetoric about Japanese militarism. “But we don’t want see any kind of escalation by responding to each of those rhetoric or actions.”The ministers also discussed Japan’s role in India’s Northeast, described by Kitamura as a “very delicate region” where Japan acts as a “neutral player”. An Act East Forum bringing together private sector and intellectuals is planned for later this year.Both sides reaffirmed commitment to the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed railway project, described by Kitamura as a “flagship project between two countries.” While the foreign ministers didn’t delve into technical details, both agreed to “accelerate” construction of the much-delayed project. Japan has committed to providing its latest E10 Shinkansen model for the corridor – a train that doesn’t yet exist even in Japan. “To be honest, it doesn’t exist yet, even Japan is not in operation. That will be introduced in the very beginning of that 2030s,” Kitamura said.