India, Australia Deepen Defence Ties with Focus on Maritime Security and Technology

New Delhi, Jun 1 (KNN) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles co-chaired the second India-Australia Defence Ministers’ Dialogue in New Delhi on Monday.

During the high-level meeting, the two countries agreed to begin developing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the provision of defence articles and defence services, a step aimed at deepening bilateral defence industrial collaboration. 

The discussions also focused on maritime security, military interoperability, defence technology cooperation and Indo-Pacific security.

The two sides reviewed progress in the India-Australia defence partnership since the inaugural dialogue in October 2025 and discussed efforts to renew and strengthen the India-Australia Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation. They reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing cooperation in support of regional peace, security and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

A key focus of the discussions was maritime security cooperation. The ministers reviewed progress towards finalising a Joint Maritime Security Collaboration Roadmap and agreed to advance maritime domain awareness activities, including cooperation involving maritime patrol aircraft and undersea domain awareness. 

They also encouraged greater engagement between the Indian Coast Guard and Australia’s Maritime Border Command.

Both countries reiterated support for a free, open, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific and underscored the importance of freedom of navigation, overflight and unimpeded trade in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

India and Australia, which co-lead the maritime safety and security working group of the Indian Ocean Rim Association, also announced plans to jointly host a Search and Rescue tabletop exercise at the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Chennai in June 2026.

The two sides agreed to explore measures to improve interoperability for exercises and operations and continue aircraft deployments from each other’s territories.

The ministers also agreed to expand cooperation through the Joint Working Group on Defence Industry, Research and Materiel and discussed future collaboration in defence science and technology, including research in areas such as sensor technologies. Marles invited India to participate in the 2026 Australian Defence Science, Technology and Research Summit.

The two sides reviewed growing military engagement between their armed forces, including participation in Exercise Milan 2026, Exercise Kakadu 2026, Exercise Talisman Sabre 2027 and Exercise Pitch Black, along with cooperation through Exercise Austrahind, Operation Render Safe and the submarine rescue exercise Black Carillon.

The ministers welcomed increased information sharing between operational headquarters and reaffirmed support for maritime domain awareness initiatives under the Quad framework. 

They also agreed to work towards developing a Common Operational Picture across the Indo-Pacific and welcomed the operationalisation of the Indian Ocean Region programme under the Quad Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness through the Information Fusion Centre–Indian Ocean Region in Gurugram.

(KNN Bureau)