The relationship between Australia and India has reached a new maturity: that was key theme of a major bilateral dialogue convened from Sydney to Canberra to Melbourne, in early 2014.
The relationship between Australia and India has reached a new maturity: that was key theme of a major bilateral dialogue convened from Sydney to Canberra to Melbourne, in early 2014.
In fact, the 2014 Australia-India Roundtable itself turned out to be a reflection of the new depth and breadth of the relationship.
It ned four days of dialogue and high-level meetings and involved more than 60 expert and experienced participants from diplomacy, government, academia, business and the media.
The agenda was likewise wide in scope, covering foreign policy, strategy, economics, global governance, science and technology, education, media perceptions and ’people-to-people’ relations - the important societal level of diplomacy.
The closed-door discussions involved a candid exchange of insights to produce a range of creative policy ideas for political leaders and officials to consider and pursue.
Priorities identified during the discussions included the need to:
• Federalise the bilateral relationship, encouraging dynamic states and cities in both countries to connect more with each other;
• Renew the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund, through which both governments have supported scientific innovation of long-term economic benefit;
• Build industry and research links so that Indian business can commercialise and scale-up research from Australian universities;
• Improve business and regulatory environments to enable cross investments by the private sectors in the two countries, including in the entire energy chain;
• Become more ambitious in strengthening defence ties, including through advanced naval exercises, shared maritime surveillance, research in areas of mutual strategic interest and potential cooperation in advanced areas of defence technology;
• Cooperate on issues of cybersecurity and internet governance, and establish deeper institutional interactions in this sphere;
• Work closely together in forums like the G20, East Asia Summit, Indian Ocean Rim Association and Indian Ocean Naval Symposium;
• Foster champions for the bilateral relationship among leaders and opinion-makers in both countries, as well as encouraging the further growth of people-people relations;
• Foster strategic collaboration across research, learning and teaching, student and staff mobility between Australia’s leading research intensive universities (Group of 8) and a select grouping of India’s best universities;
• Work towards a bilateral visit to Australia by the next Indian Prime Minister at the time of the Brisbane G20 summit in November 2014.
More than 60 prominent figures from diplomacy, think tanks, higher education, politics, business and media took part in the dialogue, held at the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney and the Australia India Institute in both Melbourne and Sydney, in partnership with Indian think tank the Observer Research Foundation. The Indian delegation interacted
First held in 2008, the roundtable has grown to be an institution in Australia-India ties. It involves substantial input from five entities. Three are the convening partners: the Lowy Institute for International Policy and the Australia India Institute, on the Australian side, and Observer Research Foundation on the Indian side.
Australia-India Roundtable Report
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