Australian Parliamentary Speaker Milton Dick in Chennai.
| Photo Credit: Akhila Easwaran
Security and trade cooperation between India and Australia are gathering pace, and relations between the two “rich and vibrant democracies” have never been stronger, said Milton Dick, Speaker of Australia’s House of Representatives.
In an interview with The Hindu, Mr. Dick said Australia is currently resetting its relationship with China, but its ties with India are “unique” with trade, security, and people-to-people dimensions.
“Security cooperation is gathering pace and I believe it’s a good thing for both countries. The agreements, the operations and those regular defence exercises and training opportunities will really help deepen our connections. I understand there were four reciprocal maritime patrol aircraft deployments which occurred across Australia and India in 2022 and 2023.”
The Labor Party MP, who is currently leading a Parliamentary delegation to India, said trade is one of the strong pillars of India-Australia ties. “India ranks sixth in Australia’s top two-way goods and services trading partner. And services and trade with India was around $46.5 billion in 2022. India is our fourth largest exports market and our 10th largest import source. So the trade benefits for both countries are there to see.” Last year, India and Australia signed the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, aimed at transforming economic ties between the two countries.
Regarding Australia’s ties with China, which had taken a hit recently before the Labor government of Anthony Albanese and Beijing took measures to improve ties, Mr. Dick said, “Discussions are occurring. We have seen constructive discussions occur over the last 12 months or so. We have seen our trade minister engage with a relevant counterpart. That relationship will continue on its own way.”
Asked about the criticisms India faces about a democratic slide at home, Mr. Dick said, “It wouldn’t be my place to give comment as Speaker from another Parliament. What I can say is we have been very warmly welcomed here. I understand the pride and joy of democracy here in India. And we are very much looking forward to (the coming) discussions, learning about the rich, vibrant democracy here in India.”
India, along with Australia, the U.S. and Japan, is part of the Quad, which is gaining prominence in the Indo-Pacific region where China is rising fast. On the role of Quad and the India-Australian cooperation in the region, Mr. Dick said Australia and India are cooperating in several regional and multilateral forums that provide economic and strategic dialogue for the region. “It’s not just the Quad, but be it the G-20, the East Asia Summit, the ASEAN regional forum, the Indian Ocean Rim Association. Working in these organisations makes sure that the countries cooperate strategically but also to better understand each country’s operations and also how we can better support each other.”
Asked if India’s position on the Ukraine war, which is different from that of Australia and its other Western partners, was an area of difference between the two, the Speaker said, “Australia respects India’s decisions. Australia has taken a very strong stance [towards the Russian invasion], but we understand each country has its own determination and its own decisions. Australia has made its position very clear.”
According to Mr. Dick, Australia-India ties are on a strong footing and there are several thrust areas that take the ties forward. One area that would further strengthen people-to-people contacts as well as economic ties is education. “We have a strong pipeline of Indian students coming to Australia — for semi skills training and also high-tech university level. We want to have discussions to expand these opportunities. Every time we see students coming to Australia, we see positive benefits for both of our countries. Australia is a very welcoming country, particularly through the students programme. So we continue to see that sector grow which is good not only for our economies but also for our people-to-people links, which is our greatest asset.”
