On Wednesday afternoon (March 8, 2023) accompanied by a high level official and business delegation, the Prime Minister of Australia is arriving in New Delhi later this week.
Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese in his first visit after assuming office last May will be accompanied by his trade and tourism minister Don Farrell and Minister of Resources Madeleine King, and a large delegation of 27 top Australian business leaders.
He will be here on a four day visit according to the Ministry of External Affairs starting March 8-11, 2023, and the overall aim is to boost bilateral engagement between the two countries in various sectors including trade, investment and critical minerals. He is visiting at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of the QUAD Leaders Summit in Australia later this summer. The first time he was in India was as a backpacker in 1990.
Briefing the media ahead of the visit, Australia Envoy to Delhi Barry O Farrell said that PM Albanese will be visiting Ahmedabad, Mumbai and New Delhi. In Ahmedabad he will watch the fourth Border-Gavaskar Trophy cricket match and also play Holi. Prime Minister Modi will join him there. According to Australia’s envoy in New Delhi, an announcement related to one Australian University opening a campus in Gujarat’s gift city will be made during the visit of PM Albanese.
Adani-Hindenburg development
According to the envoy “it is a matter for Indian regulators.” Adding, “Adani is a significant investor and his investments are fully functional in Australia, no reports in Australia that his business has ceased operations.”
Agenda in Mumbai
In Mumbai the business delegation accompanying the Australian leader will participate in the Australia-India CEO Forum in Mumbai. This meet will discuss trade and investment opportunities which have opened up following the trade agreement between the two countries and to explore other areas for future business to business cooperation.
In New Delhi on March 10, the two leaders will discuss Indo-Pacific, Maritime Security, Defence and Security Cooperation, Trade and Investment, Cyber Security, Renewable Energy as well as Technology among other issues.
The visit assumes significance as the two countries are focusing on deepening bilateral defence and security cooperation, trade and investment, as well as people to people contacts following the India-Australia Economic Cooperation which became operational late last December.
According to the MEA the strategic partnership between India and Australia was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June 2020 and through enhanced cooperation across different sectors this has strengthened more.
Financial Express Online has reported earlier when the visit was announced by PM Albanese himself on a social platform the day the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement came into force.
India-Australia-QUAD
Last week the Australian Foreign Minister was in Delhi for the G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting and this was followed by the meeting of the QUAD foreign ministers in New Delhi on March 3, 2023 for which the Foreign Minister of Japan was also present. The Australian minister also had a bilateral meeting with his counterpart external Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar.
Australia has also been positioning itself as a “trusted and reliable” supplier of critical and rare-earth minerals to India and will be discussed between the two leaders when they meet.