Remarkable expansion across all pillars of India-Australia cooperation: Jaishankar

New Delhi: There has been a "remarkable expansion" across all pillars of the India-Australia cooperation, including trade and investment, defence and security, education and skills, science and technology, and space and energy, but most of all in "our vibrant people-to-people links", External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday.

In his opening remarks at the 16th India-Australia Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue here, co-chaired with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong, he also said the recommendations that "we will make to our prime ministers will be key for them to take into account" when they meet fairly soon.

Jaishankar's remarks assume significance as Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Johannesburg from November 21 to 23 to attend the 20th G20 Leaders' Summit hosted by South Africa.

Also, according to a statement issued on the website of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, he will travel to Johannesburg, South Africa, for the annual G20 Leaders' Summit from November 20 to 22.

While in South Africa, Albanese will also hold bilateral meetings with other world leaders to advance Australia's economic and strategic interests, it said.

Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with some of the leaders present in Johannesburg, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Wednesday.

A senior MEA official on Thursday said details for these meetings are being worked out.

Senator Wong arrived here on Wednesday on a two-day visit to India and met Jaishankar at the Hyderabad House on Thursday evening.

In his address, Jaishankar emphasised the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and Australia.

"As we mark five years of that partnership, the warmth and the ease of cooperation are there for all to witness. We have seen a remarkable expansion across all pillars of cooperation, including trade and investment, defence and security, education and skills, research and innovation, science and technology, space, energy and so on, but most of all in our vibrant people-to-people links," he said.

Jaishankar said today's meeting offers an "excellent opportunity" for them to not only review the progress achieved, but also to "set the agenda and course for the next phase of our ties and the recommendations that we will make to our prime ministers will be key for them to take into account", when they will meet fairly soon.

Ahead of the India-Australia Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue in Delhi, the EAM posted on X, "Welcome, my friend FM @SenatorWong to India. Look forward to our discussions."

In his remarks, Jaishankar said, "I put a lot of value on our frequent engagements, and I do believe that they actually offer us a certain continuity of discussions and communications and understanding."

"And, the result of that... I truly believe we have a comfort level that has never been as strong as it is right now. Our Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue has been one of the key pillars of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and it surely reflects the trust, the democratic values and our common vision for a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific," he said.

"Our growing partnership obviously owes much to the guidance and vision of our prime ministers," the EAM said.

Ahead of her visit, Wong, in a statement issued on Wednesday, said her visit "continues the high tempo of engagement between our two countries" and reflects the ongoing work of the Albanese government to "deepen our relationships and strengthen our resilience".

She had also said that it would be her 26th meeting with Jaishankar.

"I look forward to discussions with my counterpart and friend, Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar, to set the course for an even more ambitious, future-focused agenda, as our partnership enters its next phase," Wong said.