PM Modi to hold virtual summit with Australian counterpart on March 21

New Delhi, March 17

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison will hold a virtual summit on March 21 to explore ways to further expand bilateral ties.

The announcement was made by External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi at a media briefing on Thursday.

Prime Minister Modi and Australian PM Morrison will hold the second India-Australia virtual summit on March 21.

Ties between India and Australia have been on an upswing in the last few years.

In June 2020, India and Australia elevated their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership and signed a landmark deal for reciprocal access to military bases for logistics support.

The Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) allows militaries of the two countries to use each other’s bases for repair and replenishment of supplies, besides facilitating scaling up of overall defence cooperation.

The Australian Navy was part of the Malabar naval exercise hosted by India in November 2020 as well as last year.

The navies of the US and Japan were also part of it. Australia was part of the Malabar exercise this year as well.