New Delhi, Oct 10: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is on an official visit to Australia, visited the historic and strategic naval facility HMAS Kuttabul in Sydney on Friday.

Sharing the update in a post on social media platform X, Singh said he was familiarised with the facilities at Sydney Harbour onboard Admiral Hudson.

“Visited the historic and strategic naval facility HMAS Kuttabul in Sydney today. Was familiarised with the impressive facilities at Sydney Harbour onboard Admiral Hudson. Both countries stand to benefit from deepening India-Australia naval collaboration and coordinated maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific region,” the Defence Minister posted.

Singh arrived in Sydney on Wednesday for a two-day official visit to Australia at the invitation of the country's Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister, Richard Marles.

On Thursday, he held bilateral meetings with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Defence Minister Richard Marles to explore new avenues for strengthening cooperation between the two nations.

Following the meetings, Prime Minister Albanese wrote on social media: "Australia and India's defence partnership keeps getting stronger — built on trust, shared interests and a commitment to a peaceful, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific. Great to meet with Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on his first trip to Australia for the Inaugural Australia-India Defence Ministers' Dialogue."

Singh described his discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Marles as “productive”, noting that both sides reviewed the full spectrum of India-Australia defence cooperation -- including the defence industry, cyber defence, maritime security, and regional challenges.

He said the talks reaffirmed the importance of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.

As top-tier security partners, India and Australia have discussed next steps to deepen their defence relationship, including enhancing strategic dialogue and increasing the complexity of joint military exercises. These discussions took place during the Australia-India Defence Ministers' Dialogue held at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday.

Rajnath Singh was welcomed by Deputy Prime Minister Marles for the inaugural session of the Dialogue, which marked a significant milestone in the bilateral defence partnership. In his opening remarks, Singh said both sides had made substantial progress in defence cooperation across a wide range of domains, keeping pace with the overall enhancement of bilateral relations.

(IANS)

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