MOVING CLOSER on trade and defence in the wake of China's aggressive posture in the Indo-Pacific, the Prime Ministers of India and Australia Friday underlined defence and security as key pillars of their strategic relationship and agreed to wrap up their Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) “as soon as possible”. “My visit has strengthened the already close relationship that Australia enjoys with India, a key partner and good friend in the Indo-Pacific. Building a stronger partnership with India will deliver tangible benefits for Australia in trade and investment, education, renewable energy, defence and security, and culture,” Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said after holding talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the economic front, Albanese said the two leaders agreed on concluding the India-Australia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) as soon as possible. “I am hopeful that we will be able to finalise it this year,” he said. Modi said the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) has opened up opportunities for trade and investments, and teams from both sides are working on the CECA. The Australian Prime Minister’s Office later said the CECA will build on the landmark trade agreement signed last year and be a transformational deal that will create new jobs and opportunities in both countries. Modi also said that he has conveyed “strong concern” to his Australian counterpart over incidents of vandalism and violence directed at the Indian community and temples in Australia earlier this year. Modi said Albanese assured him that safety of the Indian community is of “special priority”. Briefing reporters following the bilateral meeting between the two leaders, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said there were “discussions on the disturbances created by pro-Khalistani outfits in Australia”. He said the Australian PM conveyed that Canberra will be taking all “necessary measures” in this regard. Following the meeting in Hyderabad House, with Albanese by his side, Modi said, “It is a matter of regret that reports of attacks on temples have come regularly from Australia over the past few weeks. It is natural that such news worries everyone in India, disturbs our mind.” He said, “I conveyed these feelings and concerns to Prime Minister Albanese and he has assured me that the safety of the Indian community is of special priority for him. Our teams will be in regular contact on this matter, and will cooperate as much as possible.” Later, Kwatra told reporters: “Prime Minister Modi expressed strong concern on the incidents of vandalism and violence targeting the Indian community and temples in Australia. PM Albanese told Prime Minister Modi that his government has a deep understanding and appreciation of India's concern and will be taking all necessary measures to ensure that peace and harmony prevails in their society.” Since January this year, there have been reports of vandalism, violence and threats targeting the Indian community and temples in Australia with Indian diplomats raising the issue. Albanese identified “defence and security” as an important pillar in the strategic partnership amid an increasingly uncertain global security environment stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war and a belligerent China. Referring obliquely to these challenges, the Australian PM said, “Prime Minister Modi and I are discussing an increasingly uncertain global security environment and committed to strengthening the Australia-India defence and security partnership to address shared challenges and work towards an open, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific.” Welcoming “increased defence information-sharing.in the maritime domain”, Albanese said the two sides also discussed the “Malabar” military exercises involving Australia, India, Japan and the US off the coast of Perth in August. Friday's bilateral meeting incidentally took place on the day President Xi Jinping was confirmed as the unchallenged leader of China for the third term. Asked if Chinese aggression was the factor for defence cooperation, Foreign Secretary Kwatra said, “One of the elements always is the challenges that both our countries face in the maritime domain. You heard Prime Minister Albanese himself say that maritime domain cooperation is a very important segment of India-Australia cooperation. So, I think it is best that we position what India-Australia does, do between them as a bilateral ecosystem of engagement and partnership. Frankly, not a derivative of what a third country does.” New Delhi and Canberra are looking to expand cooperation in a range of sectors, maritime ties, defence, renewable energy, trade and education. The two sides, Kwatra said, signed pacts on cooperation in sports and audio-visual co-production, and setting up solar and green hydrogen task forces. Responding to a question, he said the Adani Group’s investments in Australia, in the context of the Hindenburg report, was not discussed. In his remarks, Modi said that they agreed to step up cooperation in the field of renewable energy, and identified green hydrogen and solar energy as the two areas of cooperation with Australia. The two leaders also discussed cooperation in the critical minerals supply chain. The Australian PMO said “the Prime Ministers.welcomed the establishment of a taskforce to advise the Australian and Indian governments on opportunities to accelerate the rollout of solar PV and clean supply chains, led by Australian solar expert, Professor Renate Egan and eminent Indian scientist Professor Anil Kottantharayil”. The leaders also discussed progress in negotiations for a migration and mobility agreement, which is expected to benefit students, professionals, workers, academics and researchers, the Australian PMO said. “Education was a key focus. The Prime Ministers welcomed a new agreement that will support mutual recognition of education qualifications,” it said. While the Australian PM said he looked forward to welcoming Modi to Australia for the Quad summit in May, the Indian PM conveyed a similar sentiment regarding Albanese's second visit to India this year for the G-20 summit in Delhi in September. Earlier in the day, Albanese was accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan by President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar among others. He also visited Rajghat to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi.
