Prime Minister of Australia calls on President Mukherjee

Welcoming the Australian Prime Minister to India, the President said India values its growing cooperation with Australia.  Bilateral relations between India and Australia have become multi-faceted and grown considerably in the last few years.  Our fruitful cooperation in multilateral fora reflects the growing mutual understanding and closer cooperation between the two countries. 

The President said it is a matter of satisfaction that our people have a regular dialogue on the challenges of terrorism.  India has been consistent in its position that terrorism cannot be justified under any circumstances and that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations needs to be rooted out by urgent and comprehensive action by peace loving nations in all parts of the world.

The President said India could be an attractive option for long term investment.  The ‘Make in India Conference’ and ‘Invest in India Conference’ programmes have been designed for enhancing economic cooperation and investments. 

The President said India is keen to ramp up the nuclear energy component of our total energy mix plans as part of our efforts to enhance the use of clean energy and save fossil fuels.  India sees a key role for Australian uranium supplies in this process.  India appreciates Australia’s efforts in this direction.

The President said there are more than 60,000 Indian students studying in Australia.  There is huge potential for cooperation in the education sector.  Our institutional frameworks have the potential to broaden bilateral cooperation in this sector.