Latest news with #Marles
The Print
an hour ago
- Business
- The Print
Australian Deputy PM Marles to visit India this week
Marles will travel to South and Southeast Asia from June 2 to 5 for high-level meetings, the readout said. He is also Australia's defence minister. The deputy prime minister's visit to India coincides with the fifth anniversary of the firming up of the Australia and India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which underpins the two countries' relationship and shared vision for the Indian Ocean, an Australian readout said. New Delhi, Jun 1 (PTI) Australian Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles will visit India this week as part of a four-nation trip that is aimed at boosting Canberra's security cooperation with South and Southeast Asia. Besides India, Marles is also scheduled to visit the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. 'Australia values our relationships with neighbours in the Indo-Pacific. Our deepening cooperation is at the heart of Australia's approach to ensure the Indo-Pacific remains open, inclusive and resilient,' Marles said. 'I look forward to meeting leaders and welcome productive discussions on how we can work together to shape a peaceful, secure, and prosperous region that is respectful of sovereignty,' he said. Marles will be the first senior Australian minister to visit India after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese retained power for a second term following his Labor party's victory in the parliamentary election. India and Australia signed the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) in 2022 and are negotiating a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA). PTI MPB RC This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
United News of India
3 hours ago
- Politics
- United News of India
Australian DPM and Defence Minister Richard Marles visiting India this week
Melbourne/New Delhi, June 1 (UNI) Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles will be visiting India this week during which he will meet with his counterpart and other top officials. Marles is travelling to South and Southeast Asia from June 2-5 for high-level meetings. The Australian Deputy Prime Minister will meet leaders and counterparts in the Maldives, Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia as part of the Government's commitment to deepening diplomatic and defence partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, a statement said. The visit to India coincides with the fifth anniversary of Australia and India's Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which underpins our relationship and shared vision for the Indian Ocean, he said. Marles said: 'Australia values our relationships with neighbours in the Indo-Pacific. Our deepening cooperation is at the heart of Australia's approach to ensure the Indo-Pacific remains open, inclusive and resilient.' 'I look forward to meeting leaders and welcome productive discussions on how we can work together to shape a peaceful, secure, and prosperous region that is respectful of sovereignty.' On May 23, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had extended congratulations to Richard Marles on his reappointment as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of Australia. Singh had posted on X, 'Looking forward to continuing our close cooperation to further strengthen bilateral defence ties under the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.' UNI RN
Straits Times
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Australia DPM meets Singapore leaders, reaffirms defence relationship with Singapore
Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing and Australia DPM and Defence Minister Richard Marles reaffirmed Australia's long-standing bilateral defence relationship with Singapore at the June 1 meeting. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/CHAN CHUN SING SINGAPORE — Australia Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles met with Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing on June 1. Mr Marles, who was in town for the Shangri-La Dialogue, also called on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong during his visit. At their dinner meeting, Mr Chan and Marles reaffirmed Singapore and Australia's close and long-standing bilateral defence relationship, which extends to the Asean Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM)-Plus and Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA), Mindef said in a statement. The two leaders also looked forward to strengthening defence cooperation under the next phase of their countries' Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP). These include areas such as support for expanded access to facilities in each other's country, and deeper cooperation in defence science and technology, as well as defence logistics and supply chains. Singapore and Australia said previously that they intend to sign an ambitious and wide-ranging new CSP in 2025, when the two countries celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations. The new agreement would build on a 'great track record' of cooperation achieved since the first CSP was signed in 2015, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said in Dec 2024 at the 14th Singapore-Australia Joint Ministerial Committee meeting here. The ADMM-Plus, which had been meeting annually since 2017, is a platform for Asean and its eight dialogue partners – Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States – to strengthen security and defence cooperation in the region. The FPDA is an arrangement among Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom, which first took form in 1971 to safeguard the external defence of Singapore and Malaysia, amid the withdrawal of British forces from Singapore. At their June 1 meeting, Mr Chan further expressed appreciation for Australia's support for the joint development of training areas in Australia, which will benefit both armed forces through an increase in training capacity and more sophisticated training opportunities. Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) personnel will have access to training areas in Australia that are approximately 10 times the size of the city-state by 2028, when the expanded Shoalwater Bay Training Area and the new Greenvale Training Area in Queensland are completed, the SAF said previously. Mr Marles was in Singapore with a delegation of senior Australian officials, including Admiral David Johnston, Australia's chief of defence force, and Mr Greg Moriarty, who is secretary of its Department of Defence. Earlier in the day, Mr Chan also hosted a ministerial roundtable, and met with Sweden Minister for Defence Pål Jonson, and Indian Armed Forces Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan. The 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue was attended by more than 40 minister-level representatives, and another 40-plus chiefs of defence forces and senior defence officials from 47 countries. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Time of India
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Australia and Philippines Urge China to Explain Massive Military Buildup at Asia Security Summit
During the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, China's increasing military presence in the Asia-Pacific was the focus of tensions, as Australia and the Philippines made strong appeals for transparency and restraint from Beijing. Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles had characterized China's rapid military build-up as "the most significant increase in military capability and conventional build-up by any nation since World War II," and called on China to explain its intentions and offer "strategic reassurance" to its neighbors. Marles highlighted that the size and secrecy of China's expansion are raising alarm throughout the region. 'It's not just the size of the expansion, but the lack of clear strategic intent from China. What we want to see is strategic transparency and reassurance,' he said in a media briefing. Marles drew the contrast with Australia's own strategy, that Canberra publishes its national defence review and strategy in an open manner, that this gives'total strategic clarity and assurance to our neighbors, the region, and the world.' The summit, hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies , had China responding by sending a lower-level delegation and withdrawing from a scheduled speech, leaving the stage free for sharp criticism from the US, its allies, and the regional partners. Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. branded China's behavior in the South China Sea as "absolutely irresponsible and reckless," citing recurring face-offs between Chinese and Philippine ships. "The world cannot tolerate" such tactics, Teodoro said, echoing calls for rules-based international order. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Play War Thunder now for free War Thunder Play Now Undo US Secretary Pete Hegseth threatened an "imminent" attack on Taiwan, blaming China for wanting regional hegemony—a charge China strongly denied, instead accusing the US of being the actual destabilizing force in the Asia-Pacific. French President Emmanuel Macron was also present at the summit, calling for tighter European-Asian ties and receiving a sharp rebuke from China for comparisons between Taiwan and Ukraine. As tensions escalate in the region, Australia and the Philippines and their allies assert that transparency, compliance with international law, and respect for sovereignty are paramount to ensuring stability and peace in the Indo-Pacific. Live Events
Sky News AU
a day ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Defence Minister Richard Marles shares 'grim' military outlook as China's nuclear threat casts shadow over Indo-Pacific
Australia and the United States have stressed the danger China poses militarily in the Indo-Pacific and beyond as top defence officials gathered in Singapore on Saturday to discuss their shared strategic concerns. Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier forum for defence leaders, militaries and diplomats, Defence Minister Richard Marles underlined that the Indo-Pacific region was a defence priority for Australia and its allies. Mr Marles said Australia acquiring a nuclear powered submarine capability through the AUKUS agreement was 'essential' to national security and would play a part in providing a 'geostrategic balance' in the Indo-Pacific. 'In a more interconnected world, bilateral controls are insufficient… China's decision to pursue rapid nuclear modernisation and expansion, which aims in part to reach parity with or surpass the United States, is another reason the future of strategic arms control must be revitalised,' he said. Mr Marles said new and emerging avenues of warfare, such as cyber and the weaponisation of space, as well as the integration of nuclear weapons with autonomous systems, meant traditional arms control agreements and frameworks were being 'surpassed' and at risk of becoming redundant. In a nod to the Cold War, Mr Marles said the agreements and treaties which emerged to stem nuclear proliferation had fallen into 'dangerous decline'. 'We also have to counter the grim, potentially imminent, possibility of another wave of global nuclear proliferation as states seek security in a new age of imperial ambition,' he said. Mr Marles mentioned Moscow and Pyongyang, but underscored how Beijing has embarked on the 'largest conventional military build-up' since the end of World War II. 'And it's doing so without providing any strategic transparency or reassurance. And this remains a defining feature of the strategic complexity that the Indo-Pacific and the world faces today,' he said. Mr Marles said the assurance from the United States that the most powerful military in the world saw the Indo-Pacific as a strategic priority was 'deeply welcome' as there was no effective balance of power in the region without the US. 'But we cannot leave it to the United States alone,' he said. 'Other countries must contribute to this balance as well, and Australia is investing in a generational transformation of the ADF to ensure we are not only in a position to deter for projection against us, but also to contribute to an effective regional balance where no state concludes that force is a viable way to achieve strategic goals.' US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth also spoke at the summit and warned the threat of China was real and potentially imminent as he pushed allies in the Indo-Pacific to spend more on their own defence needs. Hegseth echoed the Trump administration's motto of maintaining 'peace through strength' and stressed the importance of restoring the 'warrior ethos'. "There's no reason to sugar coat it. The threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent," Hegseth said, in some of his strongest comments on the Communist nation since he took office in January. He added that any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan "would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world", and echoed Trump's comment that China will not invade Taiwan on the president's watch. China views Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to "reunify" with the democratic and separately governed island, by force if necessary. It has stepped up military and political pressure to assert those claims, including increasing the intensity of war games around Taiwan. Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future. "It has to be clear to all that Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific," Hegseth said. China said the comments "were steeped in provocations and instigation". 'Mr. Hegseth repeatedly smeared and attacked China and relentlessly played up the so-called 'China threat'," the Chinese embassy in Singapore said on its Facebook page. "As a matter of fact, the US itself is the biggest 'troublemaker' for regional peace and stability." -with Reuters
