- Wednesday, April 24, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
AUSTRALIAN foreign minister Marise Payne and defence minister Peter Dutton will visit a number of countries in the coming days to advance Canberra’s relationship with close allies and strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific region and India features in their itinerary.
The country’s foreign ministry on Wednesday (8) confirmed in a statement the duo’s visit to Indonesia, South Korea and the United States besides India.
The visits will see 2+2 meetings of foreign and defence ministers with all the four host nations across the Indo-Pacific region.
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Payne said the visits will feature talks on cooperation on the region’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and “ensuring the recovery takes place in a way that reflects our values and principles”, Asian News International reported.
“During our meetings and engagements across the four countries, we will discuss our continuing partnerships to overcome the pandemic, including through the equitable, safe and effective distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, and our shared path to global economic recovery,” Payne, a Liberal Party member, said.
Dutton also emphasised on the upcoming visits saying they open an important opportunity to build on defence relationships that are already strong, particularly with the US on the 70th anniversary of the ANZUS (Australia New Zealand US) alliance.
“I am very much looking forward to meeting with my counterparts face-to-face to build on our already strong relationships and to discuss further our shared interests in keeping our region safe and secure,” he said.
During their visit to New Delhi, the Australian ministers will attend 2+2 talks that will feature Indian external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and defence minister Rajnath Singh.
“These inaugural 2+2 discussions are a cornerstone of the Australia-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which is founded on a shared commitment to a secure, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific region,” Payne said.
The relationship between India and Australia, both members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue group or Quad that aims at tackling China’s growing economic and military power. During their visit to India, the Australian ministers are also expected to discuss issues such as economic security, climate, critical technology, cyber and supply chains.
Similarly, Payne and Dutton will meet their respective counterparts in Jakarta, Seoul and Washington.
