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Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese met on the sidelines of the 6th Quad Leaders' Summit at Wilmington in the US. The September 21 meeting was their ninth in-person interaction since May 2022, a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs stated.
The statement said that the two leaders on Saturday (local time) discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas such as political and strategic, defence and security, trade and investments, education and research, climate change and renewable energy, and people-to-people ties. The Prime Ministers also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. They acknowledged that the frequency of high-level contacts has imparted a strong momentum to bilateral relations. Both leaders renewed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in the multilateral fora and reiterated their commitment to take the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership to even greater heights, the statement said. Following the meeting PM Modi tool to X to post, "Held extensive discussions with PM Albanese. We seek to add even more momentum in areas like trade, security, space and culture. India greatly cherishes the time tested friendship with Australia." Meanwhile Albanese tweeted, "Great to talk with Prime Minister @narendramodi today at the Quad Leaders Summit about ways to strengthen our partnership." Albanese during his speech at the Quad Leaders' Summit opening remarks said, "Can I also say how much I'm looking forward to my good friend Prime Minister Modi hosting next year's Quad Leaders' Summit in India." https://x.com/AlboMP/status/1837662127798235446 Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri in a special briefing to the press that Albanese and PM Modi discussed about the ECTA and its impact on the ambitious agreement, CECA. "2025 also happens to be the fifth anniversary of the comprehensive strategic partnership between India and Australia. There was a reference to the progress made under the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) and the impact that it was already having on trade between the two countries and the steps that the two sides were taking to conclude even more ambitious economic cooperation agreements such as the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA)," Misri said. The foreign secretary added that the two leaders also discussed about cooperation in defence and security-related issues. "There was discussion on cooperation in defence and security-related issues and the potential for cooperation in space and critical minerals," Misri said. "Along with the upcoming elections in Australia where Prime Minister Albanese will be contesting... all leaders were emphasizing that the work they have started and their achievements so far should continue, there is a need to keep working on these and intensify them. The momentum should not decrease, and will not decrease due to one leader's retirement or his taking a break. In fact, the Prime Minister himself expressed full commitment to ensuring that the work initiated by these four leaders continues with great enthusiasm," Misri said. PM Modi had also held bilateral meetings with Japanese PM Fumio Kishida and US President Joe Biden Meanwhile, Quad leaders appreciate PM Modi and India for its leadership role in the Indian Ocean. Japanese PM Kishida appreciated PM Modi and extended support to his initiative for organising Voice of Global South Summits. Australian PM Albanese said that India is the predominant power in the Indian Ocean under PM Modi while President Biden said that the US has things to learn from India's experience and leadership in the Indian Ocean. (ANI)
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