India and Australia on February 12 condemned attempts to use cyberspace and cyber-enabled technologies to undermine international peace and stability as they reaffirmed their commitment to an open, secure, free, peaceful and interoperable cyberspace and technologies that adhere to international law.
A joint statement issued after the talks between External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Australian counterpart Marise Payne here said that the two ministers recognised cooperation in the areas of cyber governance, cyber security, capacity building, innovation, digital economy, and cyber and critical technologies as an essential pillar of the India-Australia relationship.
"The ministers reaffirmed their commitment to an open, secure, free, accessible, stable, peaceful, and interoperable cyberspace and technologies that adhere to international law," the statement said.
They condemned attempts to use cyberspace and cyber-enabled technologies to undermine international peace and stability and committed to working cooperatively to strengthen mutual cooperation in various multilateral fora, including the United Nations, in developing international standards, norms and frameworks for cyberspace and critical and emerging technologies, it said.
Both ministers reiterated the importance of diversity, gender equality and women’s empowerment in the design, development and use of cyberspace and technologies.
They reiterated their commitment to secure, resilient and trusted technology and agreed to work together to address the significant threat of malicious cyber activity by state and non-state actors.
They acknowledged the importance of the security and resilience of telecommunications networks and the need to work closely with each other to protect next generation telecommunications networks, including 5G and 6G.
They emphasised the integral role of cyber and cyber-enabled critical technologies in fostering sustainable development and inclusive economic growth. They also recognised the importance of diverse and trusted technology supply chains including trusted sources and products, the statement said.
Recognising the importance of working collaboratively with international partners, the two leaders agreed to undertake joint engagement with Indo-Pacific partners to collaboratively improve the region’s cyber capabilities to promote a resilient and trusted cyberspace and effective incident response.
They emphasised the way in which technology is designed, developed, governed and used should be informed by the shared democratic values and respect for human rights.
"The Centre of Excellence for Critical and Emerging Technology Policy, to be located in Bengaluru India, demonstrates both countries’ long-term commitment to bilateral cooperation in cyber and critical technologies,” the statement said.
Mr. Jaishankar welcomed the Australian Government’s intention to open a Consulate-General in Bengaluru.
Both ministers welcomed the elevation of the bilateral cyber cooperation through the Australia-India Framework Arrangement on Cyber and Cyber-Enabled Critical Technology Cooperation under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, agreed in June 2020.
The next India-Australia Foreign Ministers’ Cyber Framework Dialogue will take place in 2023.
