India’s Maritime Think Tank Expands Track 1.5, Track 2 Diplomacy With Japan, Papua New Guinea MoUs | IPRD 2025 | India News

India’s National Maritime Foundation (NMF) on Wednesday signed two memorandums of understanding with Japan’s Institute for Peace and Security Research (RIPS) and Papua New Guinea’s Pacific RBS to strengthen engagement in what has been described as “Track 1.5 and Track 2” in Indo-Pacific maritime security. The agreements were signed on the second day of the Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue (IPRD 2025), the Indian Navy’s annual conference on maritime strategy. Both MoUs aim to deepen cooperation in research, policy development and capacity building across the region.

NMF Director General Vice Admiral Pradeep Chauhan (retired) said MoUs will help bridge the gap between formal diplomacy and semi-official exchanges. “There is a need for intensive engagement with a range of Track 1.5 and Track 2 institutions,” VAdm Chauhan said. “There are very few countries on the planet that know how to leverage Track 1 institutions into Track 1.5 or Track 2.”

He added that such frameworks allow think tanks and quasi-official actors to create guidance that official policymakers can then adopt or ignore. “The specific rationale for these two MoUs, as Tokuchi-san mentioned, is that India has signed a new comprehensive agreement with Japan and this MoU will enable both organizations to easily formulate guidance that Track 1 organizations can accept or reject,” VAdm Chauhan said.

India’s Track 1.5 expands its footprint

The concept of Track 1.5 diplomacy combines formal and informal elements in which government officials, academics, and retired civil servants interact informally to complement state-level policy. Part 2 dialogues include civil society experts and think tanks and provide flexible spaces for frank exchange of ideas.

VAdm Chauhan said the new partnerships would create “as many avenues of engagement as possible,” especially in regions where there is strategic competition. “We are keen that we can build a relationship with PNG through PNG,” he said. “PNG is already attracting a lot of interest from Australia and China. So we have to be in the game and compete. We want to be early risers in this game in every aspect of maritime.”
He added that the agreements include provisions for exchange programmes, joint article writing and common perspectives on regional maritime issues.

Japan link adds academic pillar to security ties

At the signing, RIPS president Professor Hideshi Tokuchi said the MoU builds on a long-standing partnership with NMF.

“RIPS is Japan’s oldest independent think tank dedicated solely to security studies. It turned 47 years old nine days ago. The long-standing partnership between RIPS and NMF has led to the signing of this very important MoU. It is time for us to move forward and put the MoU into actual practice,” he said.

Tokuchi identified maritime security as one of RIPS’s main academic interests, citing Japan’s dependence on maritime trade and maritime stability. He also linked the agreement to the renewed Japan-India Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation signed two months ago.

“True cooperation between the two countries based on the JDSC must be built on the academic foundation. Therefore, I hope that this MoU and the continued cooperation between RIPS and NMF can support the development of the security relationship between Japan and India,” he said.

Tokuchi later described the Memorandum of Understanding as “an overarching framework for cooperation”, adding that if the NMF sent its friends or students to Japan, “we can cooperate with them – it all depends on future coordination”.

Building bridges across the Pacific

Rear Admiral Peter Ilau, who leads the Pacific RBS, said the MoU will link the Pacific Islands region more closely with India’s maritime research and management efforts.

“This MoU is a strategic bridge between vision and implementation,” Ilau said. “I believe this is a shared commitment that builds regional capacity, shapes maritime organizations for governments, and strengthens the Pacific’s collective voice in the Indo-Pacific.”

The partnership with Papua New Guinea is in line with India’s efforts to expand its maritime footprint in the South Pacific, where major powers are vying for influence, officials said.

The two MoUs reflect India’s increasing use of Track 1.5 and Track 2 diplomacy as strategic engagement tools that link the maritime academy with policy in Asia and the Pacific, officials said.