According to Japanese media such as Kyodo News, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara Minor clarified on July 7 that Indian Prime Minister Modi did not refer to Japanese Prime Minister Yukie Takuma as a "beautiful sister".
Earlier this month, Koike Yukiyiko visited India and held a joint press conference with Modi on July 2. According to the transcript released by Japan, during her speech, Koike Yukiyiko said to Modi: "Just now, you called me 'a beautiful sister'."
However, according to a speech transcript released by the Indian government, Modi said, "Your Excellency, and my sister, Prime Minister Gao," without any descriptions related to "beautiful."
This has sparked discussions among Japanese netizens.
Murao Minor explained at a press conference on the 7th that the simultaneous interpreter hired by the Japanese government translated Modi's words as "beautiful sister", and the response from Takashima was based on the interpretation.
A official from the Japanese Prime Minister's Office said that it was possibly a two-step translation process, first from Hindi to English, and then from English to Japanese, that led to this mistake.
Indian media reported earlier that during her visit to India, Ms. Kohshi called Modi her brother, and Modi also referred to Ms. Kohshi as "my sister" twice.
