Australin PM Albanese 3rd Head of State to visit India within 2 weeks

New Delhi: After the successful official visit of the Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, and the President of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of the Italian Republic, Giorgia Meloni, 2-3 March, the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, will pay a first official visit to India on 8-11 March 2023.

It will be the third Head of State visit to India within two weeks when the G20 Finance Ministers and Foreign Ministers meeting concluded where foreign ministers of more than 40 countries were present in New Delhi.

He will be accompanied by Senator Don Farrell, Minister for Trade and Tourism, and Madeleine King, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, along with senior officials and a high-level business delegation.

This will be Prime Minister Albanese's first visit to India in his current role. Prime Minister Albanese will arrive in Ahmedabad on 8 March 2023 on the day of Holi. He will also visit Mumbai on 9 March 2023 before arriving in Delhi later.

Prime Minister Modi and Minister Albanese will hold the Annual Summit to discuss areas of cooperation under the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, besides regional and global issues of mutual interest.

The Strategic Partnership between the two countries was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June 2020, strengthened, and deepened through frequent high-level exchanges and enhanced cooperation across sectors. Prime Minister Albanese's visit is expected to provide further momentum to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Earlier this week, the Prime Minister of Italy Meloni met the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, in New Delhi. It was her first official visit to India. She also met the President of India, Draupadi Murmu and was the chief guest at the Raisina Dialogue. 

The two leaders decided to upgrade the relations between Italy and India to the level of 'Strategic Partnership, discussing the importance of a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific, based on respect for international law, sovereignty and territorial integrity, freedom of navigation, and free from coercion and conflicts. They also discussed sea governance and maintaining the rules-based maritime order based on international law, notably UNCLOS. 

The German Chancellor Scholz on his India visit on Feb 25 and 26, 2023 met the President of India, Prime Minister, to further enhance India and Germany's long-standing relationship nurtured for years. 

Germany is India's largest trade partner in Europe and among the top investors in India. In recent years, Germany has emerged as a favoured destination for Indian students and researchers wishing to pursue higher education, especially in Science and Technology. 

Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Scholz agreed to deepen and widen cooperation and to work towards a roadmap for innovation and technology to use scientific and technological knowledge for the economic development of both countries as well as to address global challenges.

A political analyst observed that G20 would boost the business between India and the rest of the world. G20 will allow India to open new business ventures in new countries, thus providing a massive boost to grow the GDP and foreign investment.