Before departing for his maiden visit to India, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday said it was an "historic opportunity" for Canberra to strengthen its relationship with New Delhi at a time of extraordinary growth and dynamism in the region. Anthony, who will arrive in India on Wednesday evening, also said Australia was a better place because of "our large, diverse Indian-Australian community".
"Australia and India have a rich friendship, underpinned by our common interests, our shared democratic values, the bonds between our people, and an affectionate but fierce sporting rivalry," Anthony tweeted.
"Trade with India presents Australian businesses and workers with tremendous opportunities for growth. This trip demonstrates our commitment to deepening our links with India, and to being a force for stability and growth in our region," he further said.
A delegation of ministers and business leaders is also accompanying Albanese during his four-day trip.
After landing in Ahmedabad airport in the evening, the Australian PM will visit Sabarmati Ashram to pay his tributes to Mahatma Gandhi. Albanese will also attend a cultural event at Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar on the occasion of the Holi festival.
He is also scheduled to attend an event of an Australian University at a five-star hotel on Wednesday night.
On Thursday morning, Albanese and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will watch the first day of the fourth Test between Australia and India at the Narendra Modi Stadium at Motera. India has taken a 2-1 lead in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
In a statement issued earlier, the Australian PM said the country shared a multifaceted relationship with India.
"This is an important visit. It will be my fourth meeting with Prime Minister Modi. One of the first things I did as Prime Minister was travel to the Quad Leaders Meeting in Tokyo on May 24 of last year. Australia and India are important partners. We share common values. We are both vibrant democracies. We have an interest in improving our economic relations," Albanese said in a statement.
He also said India was currently Australia’s sixth largest trading partner but can be "much larger" in the future.
"The truth is that India, along with Indonesia, will grow to be the third and fourth largest economies in the world in coming years. That presents an incredible opportunity for Australia. And during this visit I will be giving at least seven speeches over the coming days, talking about the opportunities which are there, to have increased people-to-people relations, to educational transfers, increased two-way investment, increased engagement between our business communities," he said.
Albanese said he would attend the G20 meeting when it is hosted in India and would host the Quad leaders meeting in Australia in the first half of this year. Besides Australia, India, Japan and the US constitute the Quad.
He said Prime Minister Modi was a strong supporter of green energy and noted that it was essential to lower emissions.
"We will be talking about the new industries and opportunities that Australia has, whether it be the provision of lithium and other materials that are important for the shift to renewables. The growth of areas like green hydrogen presents enormous opportunities. India is a driver of new technology and innovation. And there is a great scope for Australia and India to cooperate as we both transition for clean energy from an assist on trade," he said.
The Strategic Partnership between India and Australia was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June 2020. Prime Minister Albanese’s visit is expected to provide further momentum to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.
After travelling to India, Albanese will visit the United States for a bilateral meeting with President Biden.