India’s Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar, France’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian and Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne met in London for the first India-France-Australia Trilateral Ministerial Dialogue on the sidelines of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

Highlights of the Ministerial Dialogue:

• The three countries shared mutual concerns regarding the strategic, security, economic and environmental challenges in the Indo-Pacific region. 

• India, France and Australia are committed to advancing their shared values and working together to achieve a free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific. 

• The ministers reaffirmed their support for the rule of law, freedom of navigation and overflight, peaceful resolution of disputes, democratic values, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity. 

• They acknowledged the important role of regional forums such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association, the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, ASEAN, the East Asia Summit and the Pacific Islands Forum.

• They recognised that Illegal Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing is a trans-boundary and transnational problem that affects the biological sustainability of relevant fish stocks and impacts the livelihoods of fishers.

• The ministers affirmed their commitment to addressing climate change and to expand cooperation through multilateral mechanisms such as the International Solar Alliance, particularly in perspective of the COP26.

• The ministers underscored the importance of cooperation on counter-terrorism, including through the upcoming ‘No Money for Terror’ Ministerial Conference.

• They reviewed the outcomes of the first India-France-Australia Foreign Secretaries’ Trilateral Dialogue held on September 9, 2020, which have progressed on three pillars: maritime safety and security, marine and environmental cooperation, and multilateral engagement.

• They agreed to hold the second Senior Officials’ Working Group meeting in the latter half of 2021 to review the progress on the outcomes of the Ministerial Dialogue and take forward the growing partnership.

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