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India and Australia announced on Monday that they would begin developing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with regard to the provision of defence articles and services as the next step in deepening defence industrial collaborations. This marks a major step toward co-production and co-development of military hardware.
The decisions were announced following the second India-Australia Defence Ministers' Dialogue held in India, where Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles. The two sides reviewed progress made since the inaugural dialogue held on October 9, 2025 and discussed ways to strengthen strategic and defence ties. In a Joint Statement on the second India-Australia Defence Ministers' Dialogue, the ministers reaffirmed their commitment to enhance bilateral cooperation and advance the long-term vision set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. They also welcomed progress towards renewing and strengthening the Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation. "Ministers agreed to explore further exchanges, including through the Joint Working Group on Defence Industry, Research, and Material", the statement added. One of the key outcomes of the meeting was the advancements in bilateral maritime security cooperation and efforts to finalise the Joint Maritime Security Collaboration Roadmap. The two ministers agreed to progress the collaborative maritime domain awareness activities by maritime patrol aircraft and explore opportunities to enhance undersea domain awareness. Ministers encouraged further cooperation between the Indian Coast Guard and Australia's Maritime Border Command. The two ministers affirmed the importance of enhancing cooperation with regional partners to help maintain a free, open, peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific. The two ministers underscored the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight, and their strong support for unimpeded trade in the region and other lawful uses of the sea consistent with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). India and Australia, which jointly lead the Indian Ocean Rim Association's Working Group on Maritime Safety and Security, will also host a Search and Rescue (SAR) and tabletop exercise at the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Chennai in June 2026. The exercise is aimed at strengthening maritime safety and security cooperation across the Indian Ocean Region. The two countries also looked forward to exploring future defence science and technology research cooperation in new technology areas like sensor technologies. Marles invited India to participate in the 2026 Australian Defence Science, Technology, and Research Summit. They also undertook to explore arrangements to enhance procedural interoperability for exercises and operations, building on the 2020 Mutual Logistics Support Arrangement. "They also agreed to continue aircraft deployment from each other's territories to build operational familiarity", the joint statement added. (ANI)
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