Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh will visit Australia on October 09-10, 2025, at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Australia Mr Richard Marles. The visit commemorates 5 years of the India Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) and marks the first Defence Minister visit to Australia since 2014. Key highlights include bilateral discussions with his Australian counterpart and chairing a business roundtable in Sydney with industry leaders. The visit aims to strengthen the bilateral relationship and defence partnership. Three agreements are planned to be signed to enhance cooperation in information sharing, the maritime domain, and joint activities. Defence engagements have expanded to include wide-ranging interactions, military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity-building programs, maritime cooperation, ship visits, and bilateral exercises. India and Australia elevated their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in 2020, sharing common values. Mr. Richard Marles last visited India in June 2025. (Release ID: 2175069) was posted on 05 OCT 2025 5:31PM by PIB Delhi.
Key Entities Referenced
Australia: Country being visited by the Raksha Mantri, central to the bilateral discussions.
Raksha Mantri: Visiting official leading the delegation for bilateral discussions.
Ministry of Defence: The ministry under which Raksha Mantri operates, indicating the focus on defense cooperation.
India Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP): Bilateral framework that is being commemorated and strengthened through the visit.
Sydney: Location of the business roundtable, a key part of the visit.
Ministry of Defence
Raksha Mantri to Visit Australia on October 09-10,
2025
Posted On: 05 OCT 2025 5:31PM by PIB Delhi
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh will undertake a two-day official visit to Australia on October 09-10, 2025,
at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Australia Mr Richard Marles. The visit
comes at a historic moment when India and Australia commemorate 5 years of establishment of India
Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP). This will also mark the first-ever visit of a Defence
Minister to Australia under this government, since 2014.
The key highlight of Raksha Mantri's visit will be the bilateral discussions with his Australian counterpart. He
will chair a business roundtable in Sydney, which will be attended by industry leaders from both sides. He
will also call on other national leaders of Australia. The visit will provide an important opportunity for both
sides to explore new & meaningful initiatives to further strengthen the bilateral relationship and the defence
partnership.
During the visit, three agreements are planned to be signed, which will further enhance cooperation in the
areas of information sharing, the maritime domain, and joint activities. Defence engagements have expanded
over time to include wide-ranging interactions between the services, military-to-military exchanges, high-
level visits, capacity-building and training programmes, cooperation in the maritime domain, ship visits, and
bilateral exercises.
India and Australia elevated their bilateral relationship from a Strategic Partnership in 2009 to a
Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in 2020. The two nations share a deep bond rooted in common
values- pluralistic, Westminster-style democracies, Commonwealth traditions, growing economic
engagement, and increasing high-level interactions. Long-standing people-to-people connections, the presence
of Indian students in Australian universities as well as robust tourism and sporting ties, have further
strengthened the enduring partnership between the two countries.
Mr. Richard Marles last visited India in June 2025 and met his counterpart Shri Rajnath Singh, and also called
on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.
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SR/SS
(Release ID: 2175069)