Joanne Ryan (Lalor, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Acting Prime Minister. What is the significance of yesterday's meeting between our Prime Minister and the Prime Minister of India?

Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for her question. Yesterday Prime Minister Albanese met Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India in the sidelines of the G20 in Brazil. Our relationship with India has never been deeper or more important. India is now the biggest country in the world, with rising living standards and a growing economy. That is obviously fantastic for India, but it also represents an enormous opportunity for Australia.

Yesterday our two prime ministers announced that we will establish the India-Australia Renewable Energy Partnership, which will see an increase in two-way investment in renewable energy projects, such as PV solar manufacturing, battery mineral processing, green hydrogen and green steel. We will also see a building of the renewable energy workforce of the future through our two countries' establishment of the India-Australia Solar Rooftop Academy. That will be in India, and we will bring to bear our experience in training and our experience in rooftop solar by developing the curriculum and the program for this academy, which will see the training of 2,000 young Indians as solar PV technicians each and every year.

In addition to our economic cooperation, the strategic alignment between Australia and India has never been greater, as our two nations watch the rules based order being placed under increasing pressure in the region and the ocean that we share. That has seen a growth in the defence engagement between our two countries. It has seen an increase in the tempo of our defence exercises. So yesterday our prime ministers also announced that next year we will renew and update the 2009 Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation and will also establish a maritime collaboration security roadmap, which will see us engage in more activity between our defence forces on maritime domain awareness activities throughout the Indo-Pacific.

We cooperate on economic opportunity. We share strategic alignment. We also share passions, and that will be on display this Friday when our test cricketing teams resume a contest for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy—and in many ways, that represents the biggest symbol of our history, of our friendship and of the enduring bonds that unite our two peoples.