Australia recognizes India as top-tier Security Partner

Posted 22 Apr 2024

Updated 23 Apr 2024

2 min read

Australian Government in its National Defense Strategy (NDS) 2024 identified India as ‘top-tier security partner’ in the Indo-Pacific Region (IPR).
- NDS also highlighted that Australia will continue to seek opportunities with India to drive practical bilateral and multilateral cooperation, defense industry cooperation and information sharing.

India-Australia Security Partnership in IPR
- Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad): Both the countries, along with Japan and the US, are actively cooperating in Quad to tackle urgent challenges in the IPR.
- Bilateral cooperation: Both countries upgraded their bilateral ties to the level of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in 2020.
  - Joint Declaration on a shared vision for Maritime Cooperation in Indo-Pacific (2020) emphasized on promoting peace, security, stability, and prosperity in the IPR.
- Defense cooperation: Mutual Logistics Support Arrangement and Defense Science and Technology Implementing Arrangement provide a framework to deepen defense cooperation.
  - AUSTRAHIND is a joint military exercise between two countries.

Significance of India-Australia Partnership in IPR: Shared interest in maintaining a rules-based order, freedom of navigation, and respect for international laws, collaboration in emerging technologies and critical minerals, securing regional balance of power in the backdrop of Chinese aggression, etc.

Economic: Both countries signed Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement in 2022.
Clean Energy cooperation: Letter of Intent signed in 2022 on New and Renewable Technology.
Critical Mineral Investment Partnership: MoU signed in 2022 between AU critical Minerals office and Khanij Bidesh Ltd(KABIL).
Nuclear cooperation: Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement signed in 2014.