NEW DELHI: Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles on Wednesday strongly condemned the recent terror attack in Pahalgam and expressed solidarity with India in the fight against terrorism.
Marles, who is on an official visit to India from June 3 to 4, held a bilateral meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi. The two leaders discussed regional security, defence cooperation, and measures to jointly counter terrorism.
The Ministry of Defence in a statement said, "Defence Minister highlighted India's right to respond in self-defence against cross-border terrorism and described New Delhi's actions against Pakistan as measured, non-escalatory, proportionate and responsible. The two sides agreed to work together to combat terrorism in all its forms.", MoD added.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and visiting Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles welcomed the signing of the Australia-India Joint Research Project and agreed to intensify and diversify collaboration in the defence industry.
The ministers also reviewed progress made since the last 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue held in November 2023 and discussed plans to advance defence science and technology cooperation during their upcoming meeting in Australia later this year for the third edition of the 2+2 dialogue.
According to the Ministry of Defence, the meeting offered both sides an opportunity to review the status of bilateral defence engagements in the context of evolving regional and global security scenarios.
The discussions spanned a broad spectrum of issues, including strategic and security cooperation, cyber and emerging technologies, defence industry partnerships, hydrography, maritime security, and counter-terrorism. The two sides also exchanged views on regional and global challenges of mutual concern.
Both nations acknowledged the growing strategic convergence between them and committed to working together to promote a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific, including the Indian Ocean and Pacific Island regions. They also reaffirmed their shared goal of ensuring peace, prosperity, stability, and progress in the region.
The fifth anniversary of the Australia-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, signed on this day in 2020, was also celebrated at a reception hosted by the Australian High Commission in New Delhi.
Speaking at the event, Australian High Commissioner Philip Green described it as a milestone moment. “Over five years, our countries have been drawn together by strategic alignment, economic complementarity, and dynamic people-to-people connections. We have even bigger ambitions for the next five years,” he said.