Australia is intensifying its military co‑operation with India in an effort to give the Quad partnership with Japan and the United States greater substance. Government sources have described this as a deliberate move to keep Washington engaged amid mounting concerns over China’s expanding military capabilities.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi began a two‑day visit to Melbourne on Thursday, with his arrival marked by pockets of protesters in the city’s central business district. Street closures forced tram passengers to disembark early and walk into the CBD. Among the demonstrators were Sikh separatists waving Khalistani flags in support of the Punjab independence movement.

The Australian Federal Police confirmed it was prepared for further Khalistani protests as well as Muslim groups expected to gather around PM Modi’s events. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese opened proceedings organised by the Centre for Australia‑India Relations, describing PM Modi as the “living bridge between our nations”.

Albanese announced that the Business Council of Australia would lead a trade delegation to India later this year during Australia Week. He highlighted Deakin University’s achievement of becoming the first foreign university to establish a campus in India during his initial trip as Prime Minister, noting that eight branch campuses are now operating or approved.

Reflecting on his personal ties, Albanese recalled visiting India as a backpacker in 1991 and later as Prime Minister, remarking on the hospitality he has consistently received. He pointed to the large Indian‑born community in Australia as a vital link between the two nations, emphasising that multiculturalism in Australia is not theoretical but a lived reality.

The visit comes in the immediate aftermath of China’s test of a nuclear‑capable missile earlier in the week. Much of the Albanese‑Modi discussions are expected to centre on defence and security co‑operation. Both leaders are conscious of the Quad’s role in countering China’s influence, a grouping that former US president Joe Biden openly acknowledged in 2024 as designed to check Beijing’s power.

Biden had remarked that Xi Jinping was seeking diplomatic space to aggressively pursue China’s interests, warning of Chinese assertiveness across the South China Sea, East China Sea, South Asia and the Taiwan Strait.

He also noted challenges in economic and technological domains. His successor Donald Trump has not attached the same importance to the Quad, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging last year that the forum evolve into a “vehicle for action”.

Rubio’s call for concrete measures has driven Australia, Japan and India to strengthen military ties. Outcomes from the Albanese‑Modi meeting are expected to align with the Joint Statement on Enhanced Defence and Security Co‑operation signed with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in May, which emphasised capability strengthening, deeper integration and improved interoperability.

PM Modi has also recently secured high‑level agreements with Japan. An Australian source noted that defence ties with India had developed naturally but had accelerated over the past two years, partly to demonstrate to the Trump administration that the Quad could become more effective. Indian and Japanese diplomatic sources expressed hope that meaningful military engagement might persuade Trump to convene a leader‑level summit.

The Albanese‑Modi meeting is taking place against the backdrop of China’s missile test. While New Delhi has been cautious in its public comments, India’s economic interests in East Asia and the wider Indo‑Pacific mean it is directly affected. Nathan Attrill of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute observed that the launch was intended not only to showcase capability but also to gauge Indo‑Pacific reactions to China’s growing reach.

Attrill explained that Beijing is signalling its ability to project power far beyond the Taiwan Strait in any future crisis, imposing strategic pressure across the region. India, as a nuclear power with a vast border with China and strategic access to the Strait of Malacca, is well positioned both militarily and economically to counterbalance Beijing’s ambitions.

The Strait of Malacca remains a critical chokepoint, with 80 per cent of China’s oil imports transiting through it, underscoring India’s leverage in regional security dynamics.

Agencies