INDIA and Australia inked an interim free trade deal on Saturday (2) that cuts tariffs on billions of dollars of commerce as the two Quad partners bolster their economic ties.
Both signatories are members of the Quad alliance with the US and Japan, which is seen as a counterweight to an increasingly assertive China.
But while they both border the Indian Ocean, India was only Australia's seventh-largest trading partner in 2020, and accounted for just over four per cent of exports last year.
The Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement was signed simultaneously in New Delhi and Canberra by India's commerce minister Piyush Goyal and his Australian counterpart Dan Tehan in a joint ceremony.
India and Australia are "natural partners, connected by shared values of democracy, rule of law and transparency", Goyal said.
"Our relationship rests on the pillars of trust and reliability aptly reflected in our deepening geo-strategic engagement through the QUAD and the supply chain resilience initiative."
Two-way trade reached around $17 billion last year, with resource-rich Australia exporting sheep meat, coal and other commodities, and India largely supplying services.
At the same time, Canberra's relations with its biggest trading partner China are at their lowest point in a generation, with many Australian goods hit with punitive sanctions and ministerial relations frozen.
Beijing has been angered at Australia's willingness to legislate against overseas influence operations, to bar Huawei from 5G contracts and to call for an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison during a meeting on day three of COP26 at SECC on November 2, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Phil Noble - Pool/Getty Images)
India and China have also seen a sharp deterioration in ties after a high-altitude clash in 2020 left 20 Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese soldiers dead.
The agreement "delivers a clear message that democracies are working together and ensuring the security and resilience of our supply chains", Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said at Saturday's signing.
India's prime minister Narendra Modi added it would "contribute to increasing supply chain resilience and to the stability of the Indo-Pacific region".
Negotiations on a comprehensive deal between India and Australia were launched more than a decade ago but stalled in 2015.
A full trade pact is now being negotiated and Morrison, who called Modi a "dear and trusted friend", said he hoped it would be signed by the end of the year.
Saturday's agreement cuts tariffs on more than 85 per cent of Australian exports to India.
In an accompanying statement, Morrison highlighted several products hit hard by the Chinese trade dispute -- like coal, wine and rock lobsters -- which will benefit under the Indian deal, calling it "a big door into the world's fastest-growing major economy".
His conservative government is trailing in the polls ahead of an election in May, and the tensions with China are a key issue.
(AFP)
Moglai Bap and Mo Chara of Kneecap perform at Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 28, 2025. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police may probe anti-Israel comments at Glastonbury
BRITISH police said they were considering whether to launch an investigation after performers at Glastonbury Festival made anti-Israel comments during their shows.
"We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon," Avon and Somerset Police, in western England, said on X late on Saturday (28).
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap and punk duo Bob Vylan made anti-Israeli chants in separate shows on the West Holts stage on Saturday. One of the members of Bob Vylan chanted "Death, death, to the IDF" in a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.
"Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation," the police statement said.
The Israeli Embassy in Britain said it was "deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival".
Prime minister Keir Starmer said earlier this month it was "not appropriate" for Kneecap to appear at Glastonbury.
The band's frontman Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was charged with a terrorism offence last month for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah at a concert in November. He has denied the charge.
A British government minister said it was appalling that the anti-Israel chants had been made at Glastonbury, and that the festival's organisers and the BBC broadcaster - which is showing the event - had questions to answer.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said he was also appalled by violence committed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
"I'd also say to the Israeli Embassy, get your own house in order in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank," Streeting told Sky News.
"I wish they'd take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously," he said.
(Reuters)