New Delhi: INDIA’S Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, will deliver a historic address to a joint sitting of federal parliament when he visits Australia for the G20 summit in Brisbane next month.
Tony Abbott has extended an invitation to Mr Modi, who will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Australia since Rajiv Gandhi came to see Bob Hawke in 1986.
With this, Modi will be the first PM to visit Australia since Rajiv Gandhi in 1986. Besides Modi, China’s President Xi Jinping and Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron will also address federal Parliament.
The visit will provide a major boost to India-Australia ties.Ahead of Modi’s visit, a Gujarati film -Bey Yaar” (Two Friends) – has been released for the first time in Australia, in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
India is already Australia’s fifth-largest export market, but two-way trade stands at a relatively modest $15 billion a year, compared with $150bn in Australia’s two-way trade with China.
Mr Abbott and Mr Modi formed a strong bond in their meetings and telephone calls earlier this year. They are both pro-business, centre-right leaders with strong personal religious beliefs and a history of personal interest in physical exercise.
Bureau Report
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