Australia FM announces $10M funds to help India build disaster-resilient infrastructure

Australia Foreign Affairs Minister (FAM) Marise Payne is currently visiting New Delhi in a bid to advance Australia's bilateral relations with strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific belt. Minister Payne during her visit with Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton, will brush upon the enduring partnership to overcome the pandemic, effective distribution of COVID vaccines and discuss a shared path towards global economic recovery.

Marise Payne terms India as both modern and ancient

Marise Payne during her visit to New Delhi will be interacting and conducting individual discussions with External Affairs Minister Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The main points of discussion will include economic security, cyber, climate, critical technology and supply chain.

While speaking at an event, Payne said,

"Under the leadership of PM Modi & my counterpart MEA, India reassured its leadership in contributing to a secure, & prosperous region. It's certainly an exciting time to witness the continued rise of new India, a country that is both ancient & modern."

She understood that vaccines provided great hope for the world to return to normalcy and went on to acknowledge the important role that India has played in the area. Speaking about the numerous Indian students who were not able to move to Australia because of the COVID pandemic, she mentioned, "We're working hard to get Indian students back to Australia as soon as possible."

On India as a technological superpower 

Australia Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne pointed out that India was an emerging technological superpower. She noted that India was embarking on a trajectory aimed towards a global manufacturing hub and expressed her will to work with India. She said that her country would contribute $10 million to India's initiative towards disaster-resilient infrastructure.

Payne said, "We're exploring further collaboration with India, incl on low emission technologies, ensuring economic growth as we transition to a clean energy future."

China's depleting responsibilities

While talking about Australia's bilateral relations with China, Payne termed its relation to be long-standing and of great importance. However, she stated,

"We've seen the rise of China. It had lifted millions of people out of poverty but with that growth, comes responsibility. What we've seen in recent times that this has presented challenges in the relationship."

With inputs from ANI

Image Credits - ANI