Australia is keen to have a stronger and broad strategic partnership with India, which will be the core of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s first visit to New Delhi later this month.
Gillard had last visited India as Deputy Prime Minister in September 2009.
India and Australia had upgraded their relationship to a strategic partnership in 2009 during the visit of then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Australian High Commissioner Peter Varghese, who will be leaving India soon for a new posting back home, said that his country has been “conceptualising” the Indo-Pacific as its primary strategic environment,“ which brings back India into the strategic matrix of Asia.
When asked about the status of the negotiations to sign the civil nuclear pact to allow Australian uranium to reach India, Varghese demurred to answer, stating, “I will leave it for the Prime Minister to update the Indian government on where the matter is”. To a question on India pushing for FDI in several sectors, Varghese said that the international community has been watching the “issue with close interest”.