Temple attacks in Australia worrying: Modi
India and Australia on Friday signalled their intention to boost cooperation in defence, trade and mobility of professionals as Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged concerns about recent attacks on temples to his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese.
After participating in the first annual India-Australia Summit, Modi and Albanese said the two sides were moving forward with a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA) to upgrade an interim trade deal finalised last year and a migration and mobility pact that will benefit students and professionals.
Addressing a joint media interaction after their talks, Modi described security cooperation as an important pillar of the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership and said the two sides discussed maritime security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region and ways to enhance bilateral security and defence cooperation.
Albanese said both sides are committed to strengthening the defence and security partnership to address shared challenges and work towards an open, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific. Modi said he raised India’s concerns about recent attacks on temples in Australia.
The Indian side has taken up this matter with Canberra several times in recent weeks following incidents that were linked to pro-Khalistan groups.
“It is a matter of concern that in the past few weeks, there have been regular reports of attacks on temples in Australia. It is natural that such news is very worrying and distressing for everyone in India,” Modi said.