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Johnson, Morrison in Israel amid ongoing conflict  

According to the latest updates on the Israel-Hamas conflict, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has said the forces are determined to continue to operate against Hamas…reports Asian Lite News

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison have arrived in Israel to showcase support for Tel Aviv amid its ongoing conflict with Hamas, The Times of Israel reported.

During their visit, Johnson and Morrison will reportedly meet Israel President Isaac Herzog and family members of hostages held in Gaza. The two leaders will also visit southern Gaza border towns that have been devastated by the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, according to The Times of Israel report.

Former Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon has hosted the visit of Boris Johnson and Scott Morrison. He said that Morrison and Johnson will meet Israel Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers and southern communities of Israel.

In a post shared on X, Danny Danon stated, “Early this morning, at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, I received my friends Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister of Great Britain and Scott Morrison, the former Prime Minister of Australia – both true friends of Israel. During the day we will visit Israel’s Southern communities and meet with our heroic IDF soldiers. On behalf of all the people of Israel, we thank you for your steadfast support.”

Scott Morrison said he was “thankful for the opportunity to join former prime minister Johnson in coming to Israel as a demonstration of solidarity with the people and State of Israel and the Jewish community throughout the world.” He called it an opportunity to understand firsthand what is happening on the ground, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Morrison said, “It is an opportunity to understand firsthand what is occurring on the ground, honour those who have been lost, show support to those who have suffered and are now engaged in this terrible conflict and discuss how to move forward,” according to The Sydney Morning Herald report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a private meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. In a statement shared on X, Israel Prime Minister’s Office stated, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently holding a private meeting with British Prime Minister @RishiSunak at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem. The leaders will also hold an expanded meeting, at the conclusion of which they will issue statements to the media.”

According to the latest updates on the Israel-Hamas conflict, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has said the forces are determined to continue to operate against Hamas.

In a post on social media platform X, the IDF wrote, quoting Hagari, “They are strong. They are determined. They are prepared. They know what they are fighting for.”

“Our forces continue to operate against Hamas’ leadership and infrastructure in northern Gaza,” he added.The IDF also claimed that Hamas hides within the intricate network of “tunnels.”

“While Hamas obstructs their civilians from getting to safety in southern Gaza, Hamas hides within their intricate network of tunnels,” the IDF posted on X.”IDF troops uncovered multiple access points during operational activity in northern Gaza,” it added. (ANI)

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Modi, Morrison virtual summit on March 22

During the upcoming virtual summit, the Leaders will take stock of progress made on various initiatives under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the MEA said in a press release…reports Asian Lite News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison will hold the second India-Australia Virtual Summit on March 21, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The two Prime Ministers had held their historic first Virtual Summit on June 4, 2020 when the India-Australia relationship was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

During the upcoming virtual summit, the Leaders will take stock of progress made on various initiatives under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the MEA said in a press release.

“The virtual summit will lay the way forward on new initiatives and enhanced cooperation in a diverse range of sectors between India and Australia. The Leaders are expected to commit to closer cooperation in trade, critical minerals, migration and mobility, and education, among others,” the MEA noted.

The two leaders are also expected to exchange views on regional and international issues of mutual interest.

According to the MEA, the Summit highlights the importance attached by both countries to their bilateral relations as also their close cooperation on regional and global issues.

The India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has maintained the momentum of an upward trajectory with both countries continuing to collaborate closely, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, in wide-ranging areas including science and technology, defence, cyber, critical and strategic materials, water resource management, as well as public administration and governance.

Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Morrison met in Washington DC for the first in-person meeting after the Covid-19 pandemic in September 2021 on the margins of the Quad Leaders’ Summit.

They jointly launched the Infrastructure for Resilient Island States (IRIS) in Glasgow on the margins of the COP26 in November 2021.

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Macron accuses Morrison of lying about submarine deal

French President Emmanuel Macron

The deal was announced then by the United States, United Kingdom and Australia on the launch of the trilateral security pact “AUKUS”…reports Asian Lite News.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison lied to him over a cancelled submarine deal.
“I have a lot of respect for your country. I have a lot of respect and a lot of friendship for your people. I just say when we have respect, you have to be true and you have to behave in line and consistently with this value,” Macron told a group of Australian reporters who had travelled to cover the G20, CNN reported.
Asked if he thought Morrison had lied to him, Macron replied “I don’t think, I know.”
Both leaders are attending the G20 in Rome and a major climate summit in Glasgow.

In September, Canberra announced that it was scrapping a multi-billion purchase of French conventional submarines in favour of nuclear subs built with US technology.
The deal was announced then by the United States, United Kingdom and Australia on the launch of the trilateral security pact “AUKUS”.

“This exceptional decision is justified by the exceptional seriousness of the announcements made on September 15 by Australia and the United States,” said Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison

Le Drian’s indignation reflected the fact that France had its own deal with Australia, concluded in 2016, for conventional, less technologically sophisticated submarines. That USD 66 billion deal is now defunct, but a harsh legal battle over the contract appears inevitable.
The French official slammed “unacceptable behaviour between allies and partners, the consequences of which affect the very conception that we have of our alliances, our partnerships and the importance of the Indo-Pacific for Europe,” reported euronews.
Although none of the three governments made any mention of China, the new partnership is widely understood to be an attempt to counter Beijing’s assertiveness in the region, Euronews reported.
Furious France has also recalled ambassadors from the US and Australia amid submarine deal outrage.
The deal plans for deeper diplomatic, security, and defence cooperation between the three capitals with enhanced capabilities and interoperability in cyber, artificial intelligence, and quantum technologies.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Joe Biden said in a statement that their partnership is “guided by our enduring ideals and shared commitment to the international rules-based order.” (ANI)

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Modi, Morrison cement India-Australia ties

Morrison disclosed that he had spoken to Modi the night before the announcement last week of the tripartite defence pact between Australia, the UK and the US (AUKUS), which will have an impact on the Indo-Pacific region…reports Arul Louis.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison met in Washington ahead of the Quad Summit to discuss their countries’ bilateral relations, especially defence partnerships given their importance as bulwarks of democracy in the Indo-Pacific region.

Speaking to reporters after their meeting on Thursday, Morrison described Modi “a dear friend and great friend of Australia” and said, “We had a very good discussion about our defence partnerships. That was particularly progressed at the most recent 2+2 meeting of defence and foreign ministers.”

This was the first in-person meeting of the two leaders in the post-pandemic period, although they had held a virtual meeting in June.

They will be meeting again on Friday with President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Yoshihide Sugo of Japan at the Quad summit.

Morrison disclosed that he had spoken to Modi the night before the announcement last week of the tripartite defence pact between Australia, the UK and the US (AUKUS), which will have an impact on the Indo-Pacific region.

He said that there was “keen interest” in AUKUS and the plan to deploy a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines “from our partners in India, and well-received. And looking forward to see how that continues to progress.”

The US announced last week that it was going to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines.

An Indian Ministry of External Affairs readout of the Washington meeting said that Modi and Morrison reviewed the progress of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of their countries since the June encounters “and resolved to continue close cooperation for mutual well-being and towards advancing their shared objective of an open, free, prosperous and rules-based Indo-Pacific region.”

The readout said that they “expressed satisfaction” on the progress towards a bilateral Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) and noted their commitment to “achieve an early harvest announcement on an interim agreement” by the end of the year.

Morrison said that Australia’s Trade and Investment Minister Dan Tehan and India’s Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal will be meeting in New Delhi next week and added, “Prime Minister Modi and I tasked our teams to be ambitious when they sit down next week to look at our trade opportunities, particularly in the area of digital trade arrangements.”

With a view to fighting climate change, he emphasised cooperation in clean energy and low-emissions technology.

“At our meeting today we agreed to go forward with a low emissions technology partnership, a partnership that will focus on hydrogen development, ultra low-cost solar programs, to support their energy transition,” he said.

“We’ll work together closely with our good friends in India, to work with the comparative advantages that Australia has, particularly in the area of hydrogen, and working together with their manufacturing capabilities so they can realise that in their own country,” he added.

Another area they dealt with was cooperating to ensure the reliable availability of critical minerals, which are especially important for the hi-tech sectors.

Morrison said, “Prime Minister Modi and I share a passion around that project, because they are also involved in that supply chain at various different points, and it’s important that we have the choice that exists in world markets around these issues. We want to play a stronger role here.”

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Australia to host women’s safety summit

The announcement came after federal, state and territory ministers recently agreed to the terms on the National Women’s Safety Summit…reports Asian Lite News

The Australian government announced that it will convene a national summit on women’s safety in July, which will shape a new plan to prevent all kinds of violence, including domestic and sexual, against women and children.

The announcement came after federal, state and territory ministers recently agreed to the terms on the National Women’s Safety Summit, reports Xinhua news agency.

“This summit will further elevate the important national discussion we are having about women’s safety and ensure that we bring all people along with us as we develop the next national plan,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

Aus to convene national women’s safety summit(Twitter)


It comes three years after the last summit, which was attended by about 100 delegates and secured A$328 million in funding for the current plan that ends in 2021.

The new summit on July 29 and 30 is expected to be bigger as the government faces calls for greater action to prevent domestic violence.

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Anne Ruston, the Minister for Women’s Safety, Families and Social Services, said that delegates will have the opportunity to share their personal experiences and make suggestions for prevention and response measures.

“We need to make sure that we move from just reducing violence against women and their children to ending violence against women and their children,” she told Nine Entertainment newspapers.

Aus to convene national women’s safety summit(twitter)

“We must have a goal towards zero and the next plan will be an ambitious blueprint to stop the rot that is domestic violence across our national landscape.”

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, sexual assault is a major health and welfare issue in Australia and worldwide.

Almost 2 million Australian adults have experienced at least one sexual assault since the age of 15.

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