Clear message to China from the increasing friendship between India and Australia
In view of the increasing challenges of China in the sea, the quad countries are moving forward on a new strategy. All the four countries are extending their hands towards each other on issues ranging from development to strategic. In this sequence, for the first time in the year 2020, India included Australia in its famous naval exercise Malabar. Now for the first time in the month of August this year Malabar naval exercise will be held in Australia. India will also send long-range maritime patrol aircraft along with frontline warships in the Malabar exercise. The growing partnership between India and Australia is being considered very important amid deteriorating relations with China. China is rapidly expanding its navy. It already has the largest navy in the world with 355 warships and submarines. The Quad countries know all too well what this means, hence the need for a maritime partnership is being felt to meet any challenge in the years to come. All the four members of the Quad bypassed China’s objections and have clearly stated that no kind of ‘coercion’ will be allowed to run in the Indo-Pacific region.
India-Australia deepens personal relationship outside Quad
China is also well aware of India-Australia personal relations outside the Quad. Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has visited Australia thrice in a year. Last year, he had visited Melbourne to attend the Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting. In a recent visit, he said that countries like India and Australia need to work together to decide the direction of the world. During this, many topics including bilateral strategic partnership, economic opportunities, people-to-people relations, cricket and the Indo-Pacific region were discussed. At the same time, at the Raisina Sydney Business Breakfast, Jaishankar said that in the current global situation, India and Australia will have to work even more for each other.
Relationship with Australia was connected before India’s independence
The story of diplomatic relations with Australia began right from India’s independence. In 1941, the first Consulate General of India was opened in the Trade Office in Sydney. Then Australia appointed its first High Commissioner to India in 1945. The Australian Foreign Minister’s website states that Australia has given India a leading position in its international partnerships. It added, “Regular meetings of the leaders were followed by two-way visits by the Prime Ministers in 2014.” Then the then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull visited New Delhi and Mumbai in April 2017. Then on March 21, 2022, there was a second virtual meeting between India and Australia in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed several key strategic issues with the then Prime Minister Scott Morrison. In it, both the leaders resolved to increase cooperation in the political, economic, security, cyber, technology and defense sectors of India and Australia. In this conversation, the two leaders acknowledged that the bilateral relationship between India and Australia is based on a strong foundation of mutual trust, understanding, mutual interests and shared values of democracy as well as the rule of law, which is growing stronger.
American Intelligence Group’s worrying report on China
On the other hand, in the report of the American Intelligence Community, great apprehension has been expressed regarding the ongoing tension between India and China. It has been said in the report that since the violence in Galvan, India-China relations could not improve, which is expected to deteriorate further in the future. In fact, in the joint report of the US intelligence departments, the danger of China’s increasing dominance in the world has been warned. In this, US intelligence officials warned that the nuclear weapons of both India and China would result in massive destruction in the event of an armed conflict. In the US Parliament, a top military commander claimed that China has more than 1000 inter ballistic missiles.
Australian think tank also expressed concern over China
At the same time, The Asutralian Strategic Policy Institute, a think tank in Australia, has also listed the dangers of increasing global dominance of China in the field of advanced technology. This think tank has said in its report published after a one-year study that China is ahead in 37 out of 44 highly effective technologies for improving the world. These include technologies such as electric batteries, hypersonics, and advanced radio frequency communication services such as 5G and 6G. The report says that in the direction of becoming a global economic power, it is not necessary to increase only infrastructure and economic business. China had already understood this fact. That’s why he started making efforts to hone his talents, improve his educational status and system.
The report says that due to its initiatives, China is creating a new history in the world of scientific and technological progress and the think tanks of Western countries like Australia have not only started accepting China’s power, but also taking it into global technological development. Have also started underlining. According to this report, India ranks second among the top five countries in four out of 44 technologies, while in the top third in the list of 15 technologies. India is second only to China in smart materials, composite materials, machining processes and biofuels. Nanoscale materials, including coatings, ranked third among 15 others. This progress of India is definitely going to sting China.
Modi-Albaneez circled the stadium
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a round of the stadium with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese in a golf cart. This cart is meant for carrying golf players to the golf course. The stadium was resounding with the applause of the spectators as the cart went round. Both the Prime Ministers handed over Test caps to the captains of their respective cricket teams before the toss. After this, PM Modi made Captain Rohit Sharma and Australian PM Anthony Albanese meet each other by holding their hands. Not only this, PM Modi himself encouraged him by shaking hands with Australia’s captain Steve Smith. Keep in mind that PM Modi first welcomed a foreign guest in Ahmedabad, then it was Chinese President Xi Jinping. In 2014, pictures of PM Modi and the President from Ahmedabad became very popular. Nine years later, a strong message has been given to President Xi and his country China from the same Ahmedabad.