India, Australia review bilateral ties, stresses need for boosting anti-terror cooperation

India and Australia on Monday emphasised on the need for bolstering cooperation in combatting terrorism, violent extremism and meeting other global challenges.

The commitment was made during the third India-Australia Foreign and Defence Secretaries' Dialogue which was held in the national capital, during which both sides reviewed bilateral ties.

The Indian delegation was led by Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar and Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale, while the Australian side was led by Defence Secretary Greg Moriarty and Foreign Secretary Frances Adamson.

"Achieving the shared objectives of peace, prosperity and progress in the Indo-Pacific region. The 3rd India-Australia Foreign and Defence Secretaries' Dialogue saw excellent discussions between the two sides as they welcomed the recent progress made in deepening ties", MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

"Both sides emphasised the need for enhancing collaboration in tackling terrorism, violent extremism and meeting other global challenges," he said in a follow-up tweet.

During the dialogue, issues related to bilateral defence engagements, areas to enhance cooperation in the field of defence industry and defence technology as well as the prevailing regional security concerns were discussed, according to an official statement.

"Defence Secretary conveyed his satisfaction on the ongoing defence engagements between the two armed forces and conveyed the commitment of the Ministry of Defence to further enhance the defence cooperation engagements, both in scope and complexity," it said.

Before the 2+2 secretary-level dialogue, both the defence secretaries held a bilateral meeting.

( With inputs from ANI )