Bangladesh measles outbreak: Death toll crosses 600 as 7 children die in 24 hours
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As strategic competition intensifies across the Indo-Pacific, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles will travel to India next week for the second Australia-India Defence Ministers’ Dialogue, aimed at expanding military cooperation and strengthening the two countries’ strategic partnership.
Marles will hold talks with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi, with discussions expected to focus on operational military cooperation, maritime security, defence industry collaboration and regional security challenges.
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Marles’ visit comes at a time when both India and Australia are seeking to deepen their security engagement amid growing geopolitical churn in the Indo-Pacific, particularly concerns over maritime security, supply-chain resilience and regional stability.
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Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence of Australia, Richard Marles, is set to travel to India, where he will meet with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh for the 2nd Australia-India Defence Ministers’ Dialogue. pic.twitter.com/mspG4WZD1O
— ANI (@ANI) May 28, 2026
Calling India a “top-tier security partner”, Marles said Canberra remains committed to strengthening defence and diplomatic ties with New Delhi.
“Australia and India are top-tier security partners. I look forward to meeting Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and building on the momentum generated during his visit to Australia last year,” he said.
Officials described the visit as another step in the steady expansion of defence ties between the two Quad partners. The dialogue follows the inaugural Australia-India Defence Ministers’ meeting held in Australia last October, where both sides agreed to enhance interoperability between their armed forces and explore greater defence-industrial cooperation.
Before arriving in India, Marles will participate in the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore from May 29 to 31, one of Asia’s most influential security forums that brings together defence ministers, military chiefs and strategic experts from across the world.
At the summit, Marles is scheduled to address a plenary session on “Asia’s Maritime Security Disorder”, a subject that has assumed increasing significance amid rising tensions in several maritime theatres across the Indo-Pacific.
He is also expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings with defence counterparts on the sidelines of the summit.
Describing the regional security landscape as increasingly uncertain, Marles said forums such as the Shangri-La Dialogue have become more important than ever for countries seeking to coordinate responses to shared challenges.
“In a deteriorating strategic environment, the Shangri-La Dialogue provides an important forum to engage with partners on shared challenges,” he said.
The India visit is expected to reinforce the growing strategic convergence between New Delhi and Canberra, which have significantly upgraded defence cooperation in recent years through joint military exercises, enhanced maritime engagement and closer coordination within the Quad framework.
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