Good evening and thank you for hosting me.
I’d like to start by acknowledging that we are gathered here today on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, and I want to pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
“Aap sabka bahaut swaagat” hai (A very warm welcome to you all) or “Namaskar”
I would like to thank The Pacific Institute of Australia and our gracious host Martin Holme for organising this and inviting me along.
I’d like to first take some time to talk a little bit about the work we do at Australia India Institute.
We are a research and policy think tank working towards promoting a strong bilateral partnership between Australia and India. The direction of the institute is guided under four pillars:
- Sustainable Economies
- Education
- Security and Geopolitics
- And Cultural Diplomacy
It is in these spaces that the AII has established itself as a reputable organisation with strong convening powers and delivering high quality, diverse programs.
Last year, we launched a new Defence Program with Minister Richard Marles. That led us to delivering two track 1.5 dialogues one in Kolkata on building resilience for island states in the Indo-Pacific, and one in Sydney on defence industry collaboration. The energy that is the Institute is one mirrored in the energy we currently see in the Australia-India relationship.
There is no doubt that there is enormous room for greater, stronger partnerships and collaborations between Australia and India’s governments and industries. India and Australia’s bilateral endeavours to enhance their strategic footprint geographically meets halfway in the Indo-Pacific. Australia and India have long played important roles as regional powers in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. We see a commonality in working with Island States to build resilience, sustainability, and security and to assist in their economic development.
To address the ever-increasing threats of climate change, economic coercion and maritime security impose on the Islanders way of life.
I have a rather personal connection to Island State life, with my family Indian migrants of Fiji. I am the great granddaughter of Indian indentured labourers from Fiji… I am fortunate to have my great grandfather’s Emigration Pass and from that I have traced the steps if Laxman Singh and his journey leaving Kiddepore Port on the Hoogley river of Calcutta in 1902 aboard MV Virawa with hundreds of other Indians destined for the British colonies to work on the sugarcane fields and in search of a better life from British India.
The tale of Fiji’s indentured laborers is one of resilience, migration, cultural integration, and unwavering spirit in the face of adversity. A not so unfamiliar tale told by many islanders in the Indo-Pacific. It is their story that was further unpacked at our Kolkata Dialogue in 2023. A 1.5 track Dialogue that spoke to directly to Australia and India’s long held roles as regional powers in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
As s confluence of seas, a bridge between the world’s two greatest oceans, the Indo-Pacific hosts a diverse and rich number of small island states critical to international policy yet often overlooked. Before visits from Modi in 2016 and the U.S. Secretary of State in 2022, it had been over two decades since an Indian leader and three decades by a U.S. leader respectively had visited these islands.
In retrospect, these visits could be put down to a response to China’s rising power and influence in the region OR India’s own repositioning to become a global superpower itself, which means it must look beyond the Indian Ocean region. Like India, Pacific Island Nations were once colonies of European imperialists. And so today India is widely regarded as a leading voice for the Global South.
This was most clearly demonstrated through its Presidency of the G20, addressing important issues for developing countries through its theme “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth-One Family-One Future” with its focus on equitable growth for all nations and on the need for reforming organisations like the WTO, IMF, and World Bank to aid developing nations.
India’s shift from Look East to Act East has demonstrated India’s growing concerns and strong interest in the region. Modi’s most recent visit in 2023 to Papa New Guinea was the first ever time the country received an Indian Prime Minister where he attended the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) summit. The summit, which hosted India, Australia and 13 other Pacific Island nations marked India’s renewed interest in the region, with Modi promising greater multilateral engagements and geostrategic ambitions.
India’s growing movements in the Pacific has inspired a stronger relationship with its long-term ally, Australia. Australia’s foreign interests in the Pacific can be put down to a sort of kin ship, or “Vuvale” as Fijians might say, the word for ‘family’ in the Fijian language. As Foreign Minister Penny Wong has said, “We feel a profound sense of kinship with the Pacific, of wanting to connect with the Pacific as part of one family.”
This bond has been further strengthened in Australia’s new International Development Policy. I was pleased to play a role on the expert advisory group for government. Australia’s presence in the Indo-Pacific is not just a promise on paper. Drawing inspiration from the Boe Declaration on regional security, Australia have embarked on a journey of fortifying our security cooperation through the deployment of the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
Australia and India have boasted a progressive friendship over the past decade but historically their collaboration in the region has been relatively placid. Yet the opening of Australia’s diplomatic mission in the Maldives, the Indo-Pacific Endeavour and the elevated defence presence in New Delhi are recent steps taken by Australia to collaborate with India and other partners to build an open and secure Indo-Pacific.
The wealth of experience, particularly in maritime security, that both Australia and India can share can be instrumental to the development and security of island states. Home to several global critical supply chains and floating on top of some of the world’s most sought after critical mineral deposits, small island states are vulnerable to fierce geostrategic competition.
One of our wonderful Defence Researchers, Sam Bashfield, recently completed his PhD on maritime security and the importance of the securitization of the critical above and undersea water domain in the Indo-Pacific. Sam’s work extends to consider seabed critical minerals as an emerging frontier for India-Australia cooperation’s.
With the Pacific Ocean rich in a wealth of critical mineral deposits, some of which are close to the two nations coastlines, China’s Ocean Mineral Resources Research and Development Association has already obtained contracts from the International Seabed Authority for seabed mining in the Pacific Oceans. Seabed mining raises significant environmental concern for small island states in the Indo-Pacific.
As some of the smallest contributors to climate change yet one of the world’s most impacted regions, seabed mining contributes to the acceleration of global warming and rising sea-levels. Yet, despite this, small island states have diametrically opposed views over deep seabed mining
The divided nature of this issue in the region can be viewed as an opportunity to coordinate bilateral and multilateral efforts to secure both regionally domestic and international cohesiveness. In the Australia-India Ministerial 2+2 held in November 2023, the positive and increased momentum of the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership saw the reaffirmation of support for sovereignty and territorial integrity for small island states in the Indo-Pacific.
Both sides agreed to implement practical projects to drive scientific collaboration across Indo-Pacific marine ecology to counteract China’s increasing presence. What we see here is the opportunity to grow bilateral cooperation in the region using shared expertise, resources and efforts to secure Indo-Pacific small island state security.
What better way to secure critical supply chains in the Indo-Pacific to ensure greater security of small islands states is through maritime defence collaboration. India’s maritime sector is booming, whereas Australia’s is falling behind the game. As a nation that promotes its extensive maritime capabilities, a recent report by the Strategic Fleet Taskforce found that Australia needs a stronger strategic fleet and maritime workforce to compete with nations like India and China.
But instead of competing, these recommendations are an opportunity to grow greater collaborative capacity with India. The India-Australia (CSP) Comprehensive Strategic Partnership is an effort that aims to broaden the scope of the two nations defence and security capabilities together.
Small island states in the Indo-Pacific are vulnerable but not powerless. There is a lot of low hanging fruit for Australia and India to co-ordinate their efforts. At a time of geopolitical turbulence in the Indo-Pacific – our two nations standing together, cooperating and sharing information is more important than ever.
Building political, economic, and societal resilience amongst island states in the Indo-Pacific is crucial to securing maritime domain and global critical supply chains. Perhaps most importantly, the most critical challenge lies in framing the narrative for bureaucrats sitting in the capitals of these wealthy nations. The lived experiences of those who battle the effects of geopolitical insecurity every day are not reflected in a way that communicates the desperate need for improvement.
Through initiatives like our bilateral defence dialogues and our Kolkata Dialogue 2023, conversations on building island state resilience can be put into action. Australia and India hold a unique opportunity to lead and help shape a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, and in doing so build greater innovative efforts to create peace and security for all people within it.
Thank you.