Diplomatist Magazine Diplomatist March 2019 | Page 17

Former Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott
offi cially welcomes Prime Minister to the G20
Leader's Summit in Brisbane.
India-Australia Relations
Growing from Strength to Strength
By Shaun Star*
T
he India Australia relationship is
emerging as a significant bilateral
engagement, encouraged by the
convergence of interests between the two
nations in areas such as education, regional
security, energy and resources, and international
trade.
Australia and India share much in common,
both historically and from a modern geopolitical
perspective. The changing landscape within the
Indo-Pacifi c region has been the catalyst for
stronger ties in recent times. In addition, shared
democratic values, a common love for the sport,
as well as economic and strategic interests make
Australia and India a natural fi t for collaboration
and cooperation.
Over the past fi ve years, both governments
have come to recognise that the Australia-
India relationship needs to be at the forefront
of international partnerships. This article will
briefl y outline some of the recent landmarks
which are building momentum in the Australia-
India relationship.
Government-to-Government
In 2014, Australian Prime Minister, Tony
Abbott, visited India. This was the fi rst bilateral
visit by a prime minister since leader Narendra
Modi was elected. This was followed by
Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Australia in
conjunction with the G20 Summit in November
2014. Prime Minister Modi’s visit was the fi rst
offi cial visit by an Indian Prime Minister in 28
years (since Rajiv Gandhi in 1986). To put this
into perspective, since 50 percent of India’s
population is under the age of 25, more than half
of the Indian population had not witnessed a
Prime Ministerial state visit to Australia during
their lifetime. These state visits, which occurred
in quick succession, signaled to the world
that the Australian and Indian governments,
were more than ever before, seeing the value
in investing in this important relationship.
Momentum in the bilateral partnership was
beginning to build.
Indeed, Prime Minister Modi highlighted the
importance of the Australia-India partnership
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 7 • Issue 3 • March 2019, Noida • 17