"Better than ever": Australia's Assistant Defence Minister lauds India ties

Sydney [Australia], October 10 (ANI): Australia's Assistant Minister of Defence Peter Khalil on Friday said the relationship between Australia and India is "better than it has ever been," highlighting opportunities to expand ties strategically, economically, in defence, and culturally.

Speaking to ANI, Khalil said, "This visit has been remarkable. It has been a great honour to welcome Defence Minister Singh to Australia to show him the beautiful city of Sydney and to also have this defence roundtable with the defence industry, where we can talk about the type of collaboration that will expand the defence relationship as well."

During a bilateral meeting with Singh, Khalil described the visit as historic, noting that it had been 12 years since the last visit by an Indian Defence Minister.

He also recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Sydney last year, which saw tens of thousands of people gather in Sydney to celebrate the growing ties between the two countries.

Khalil highlighted the contributions of the Indian diaspora in Australia, calling them "top shelf" for their impact across industries and sectors.

"The contributions that Indians have made to this country are top shelf. The contribution across so many industries and sectors is what makes Australia successful," he said during the bilateral talks.

Khalil stated that the partnership between Australia and India is founded on mutual trust, shared interests, and a common vision for an open, stable, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.

"Our partnership, the true partnership that we have, that grows more integrated, that has more cooperative elements to it every day, is actually critically important for both our nations, the challenges that we jointly face globally," he said. He also emphasised the cultural connection and friendship between the peoples of both nations as a source of strength amid global uncertainty.

On economic and defence cooperation, Khalil highlighted the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA), which came into effect in December 2022, as a key element in deepening economic ties.

"Together all of these elements reflect our shared commitment to a dynamic partnership that leverages human capital and economic opportunity. Those ties, human and economic, are two of the three key pillars of cooperation between our nations. The third, of course, is defence," he said.

Khalil added that defence and security cooperation has grown into one of the strongest pillars of the strategic partnership, encompassing maritime domain awareness, information sharing, science and technology, and joint training exercises.

He pointed to India's inaugural participation in Australia's Talisman Sabre exercise as an example of increasing strategic convergence and welcomed the ongoing discussions between the defence industry, innovation, research, and business leaders during Australia's first defence industry trade mission to India.

Soon after the bilateral meeting, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh noted that the meeting "advanced industrial partnerships & capability development in our mutual defence sectors, further strengthening the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership."

https://x.com/rajnathsingh/status/1976536786647323112

The round table was attended by India's High Commissioner to Australia, Gopal Baglay, Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, and Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, along with senior defence and industry officials from both countries.(ANI)

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