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As part of the dialogue, Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne and India’s Minister of External Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar outlined the need for continued cooperation in cyber governance, cyber security and critical telecommunications technology.
Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women Senator Marise Payne and India’s Minister for External Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar issued a joint statement following the Inaugural India-Australia Foreign Ministers’ Cyber Framework Dialogue, held in Melbourne on the 12th of February.
During the meeting, Ministers from both countries reiterated the importance of the Australia-India Framework Arrangement on Cyber and Cyber-Enabled Critical Technology Cooperation, which was developed as part of the Australian and Indian Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and rolling dialogue since 2020.
According to Minister Payne, the meeting covered a range of topics with both nations affirming continued cooperation in “cyber governance, cyber security, capacity building, innovation, digital economy and cyber and critical technologies”.
The dialogue is also expected to result in greater Australian presence in India, with the Australian government signalling their intention to open a Consulate-General in Bengaluru in India near the site of India’s Centre of Excellence for Critical and Emerging Technology Policy.
Both ministers also acknowledged the importance of protecting critical infrastructure such as telecommunications networks, pledging to work together on ensuring the security of 5G and 6G capabilities while creating a path to collaborate more with other countries in the Indo-Pacific.
It is expected that Australia and India would undertake a Joint Working Group on Information Communication Technologies next March, with the next India-Australia Foreign Ministers’ Cyber Framework Dialogue in 2023.