New Delhi [India], November 2 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is set to visit Australia and Singapore from November 3 to November 8, 2024. The Australian leg of Jaishankar's visit will last from November 3 to November 7, 2024. During his visit, Jaishankar will travel to Brisbane and inaugurate India's fourth consulate in Australia.

The India-Australia relationship has seen transformational growth in recent times. Bilateral cooperation has experienced exponential growth in existing frameworks and has further expanded across a wide spectrum of new areas, opening up new possibilities at both the bilateral and global levels.

Jaishankar will also co-chair the 15th Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue (FMFD) with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong in Canberra. He is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the inaugural session of the second Raisina Down Under to be held in the Australian Parliament House. Additionally, he will interact with Australian leadership, parliamentarians, members of the Indian diaspora, the business community, media, and think tanks.

The Indian community in Australia continues to grow in importance, with a population of more than 900,000 as per the census of 2021. Indians make up the second-largest migrant group in Australia.

For the second leg of the visit, the External Affairs Minister will travel to Singapore for an official visit on November 8, 2024, during which he will address the 8th Roundtable of the ASEAN-India Network of Think Tanks. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comprises Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.

India has a strengthened and multi-faceted relationship with ASEAN, which is expressed through the Act East Policy. Jaishankar will also meet the leadership of Singapore to review the close partnership between the two countries and explore avenues to further enhance the bilateral relationship.

India and Singapore share a close bilateral relationship. Singapore has played an important role in reconnecting India to the countries of Southeast Asia since the inception of the Look East Policy in the early 1990s. The Indian community has a significant presence in Singapore, constituting about 9.2 per cent of the total population of the country.

EAM Jaishankar's visit to the two countries is set to boost the already existing warm and friendly ties India has with Australia and Singapore. (ANI)