Relations between India and Australia: Strategic and commercial ties; the role of China

 Relations between India and Australia: Strategic and commercial ties; the role of China

Both nations work closely together in many sectors and are significant partners in the Indo-Pacific. Here are some important elements of the two countries' relationship as Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits India.

Anthony Albanese, the prime minister of Australia, tweeted about the fierce but cordial sporting competition between his country and India after touring the cricket stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"True respect, which symbolises the love and camaraderie between our peoples, is at the core of this competition... Australia and India are vying with one another to be the greatest in the world on the field. Albanese is the first head of state from his nation to visit India on a bilateral basis since Malcolm Turnbull in 2017. "Off the field, we are working together to build a better world," he said.

historical context

The mutual principles of pluralistic, Westminster-style democracies, Commonwealth traditions, growing economic cooperation, and heightened high-level encounters serve as the foundation for India and Australia's bilateral relationship.

Strong, thriving, secular, multicultural democracies, a free press, an independent legal system, and the English language are just a few of the many shared characteristics that serve as the basis for close cooperation and complex relations between the two nations.

The start of India's economic reforms and the end of the Cold War in 1991 served as the catalyst for the growth of tighter ties between the two nations. Growing tourist and sporting ties, as well as the rise in Indian students studying in Australia for graduate degrees, have all contributed significantly to the improvement of bilateral relations.

Together with the ongoing economic involvement, the partnership developed over time into one based on strategy. The relationship has recently started on a new path of transformational growth. The two democracies have expanded their collaboration to multilateral formats, such as the Quad (with the United States and Japan included), as a result of growing convergence on issues like international terrorism and a shared commitment to a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific region.

a strategic partnership

Tony Abbott, the prime minister of Australia, paid a visit to India in September 2014, and in November of that same year, Narendra Modi made history by travelling to Australia for the first time since Rajiv Gandhi did so in 1986. He also made history by becoming the first Indian Prime Minister to address a joint session of the Australian Parliament.

Modi and Prime Minister Scott Morrison upgraded the bilateral relationship from a Strategic Partnership signed in 2009 to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership at the India-Australia Leaders' Virtual Summit in June 2020. (CSP).

Modi and Morrison met in person in Glasgow during the COP26 climate meeting and spoke on the phone three times in 2021. In March 2022, at the second India-Australia Virtual Summit, A number of significant announcements were made, including the Agreement for Recognition of Educational Credentials to enable mobility and the Letter of Intent on the Migration and Mobility Partnership Arrangement to encourage the sharing of skills. comprising both professionals and students.

Albanese and the prime minister had three meetings last year. A number of ministerial visits and high-level engagements took place in 2022 and 2023. On February 18, the foreign minister left for Australia, and from February 28 to March 3, her Australian colleague Penny Wong paid a visit. Jason Clare, the Australian minister of education, also went there.

2018 saw a deterioration in Australia-China relations after Canberra barred the Chinese telecoms company Huawei from 5G networks. Subsequently, it denounced China's human rights record in Xinjiang and Hong Kong and urged for a probe into the COVID-19's origins. In retaliation, China put tariffs on Australian goods and ceased all ministerial engagement.

India is bordered by an aggressive Chinese army. Since 2013, New Delhi and Canberra have been evaluating the Chinese challenge.