Australia

July 13, 2024 3:18 PM

Australia PM tells Russia to ‘back off’ after claims over espionage arrests

Russia accused Australia of inciting "anti-Russian paranoia" for charging a Russian-born couple with espionage, prompting Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Saturday to tell Moscow to "back off". The married couple, who hold Australian citizenship, were arrested on charges of working to access material related to Australia's national security, though no significant compromise was identified, the Australian Federal Police said on Friday. "There is widespread information about the arrest in Bris...

June 21, 2024 3:56 PM

Jaishankar hails Australia’s assistance in delivering Indian supplies to Papua New Guinea

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday expressed gratitude to Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs Senator Penny Wong for coordinating with India in delivering Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) assistance to the landslide affected-Enga Province in Papua New Guinea. EAM Jaishankar said that the India-Australia is delivering the HADR assistance in the Indo-Pacific. Earlier today, Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Senator Penny Wong said that Australia is coordinati...

June 17, 2024 10:42 AM

Olympics-Australia’s Wu dives in for fifth Games at Paris

Melissa Wu will hope to keep Australia in the diving medals at a seventh successive Olympics after claiming a spot on her fifth Games team for Paris. At 16, Wu became the country's youngest diver to win an Olympic medal with silver in the synchronised 10m platform event at the 2008 Beijing Games. Now 32, she will become Australia's first diver to compete at five Olympics after overcoming a number of injuries since the Tokyo Games. "It's a pretty incredible thing to achieve five Olympic teams,...

June 5, 2024 7:03 PM

Highly pathogenic H7 bird flu found on fourth poultry farm in Australia

A highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza has been found on a fourth poultry farm near Melbourne near two other properties where the virus had already been detected, the government of Australia's Victoria state said on Wednesday. "Avian influenza virus has been confirmed at a fourth Victorian poultry farm," the government said in a statement. The H7N3 strain of the virus has been detected at the farm, it said, which is not the same as the H5N1 strain that has spread globally through bird a...

MUMBAI, INDIA - MAY 13: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar addressing conference on India's Vishwa Bandhu Approach to Global Relation at Constitution Club, Kandivali on May 13, 2024 in Mumbai, India. (Photo by Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

May 21, 2024 11:14 AM

EAM Jaishankar reaffirms Quad’s commitment to a secure Indo-Pacific

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar said on Monday that the Quad alliance is working towards realising its shared vision of a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific and delivering in the field of clean energy, disaster relief and health security. "Whether it's delivering clean energy, STEM talent, disaster relief, health security or resilient communication infrastructure, the Quad is working towards realising its shared vision of a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific. Quad partners would co...

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - 2024/02/27: Trees are decorated with Taegeukgi, South Korea's national flags at the entrance to Hyochang Park in the center of Seoul to commemorate Korean Independence Movement Day. The Korean Independence Movement Day, also known as the March 1st Movement, was an important protest movement of Koreans in early 1919 demanding independence from Japan and an end to forced assimilation into Japanese culture. (Photo by KIM Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

May 1, 2024 11:24 AM

South Korea discusses joining part of AUKUS pact with US, UK and Australia

South Korea has held talks about joining part of the AUKUS defence deal between the U.S., Britain and Australia, Defence Minister Shin Won-sik said on Wednesday, only weeks after the pact said it would consider including Japan. Formed in 2021, AUKUS is a two-stage security pact to counteract China's growing power in the Asia Pacific region. While a first stage to give Australia nuclear submarine technology is limited to the core trio, they have raised the possibility of other countries j...

April 24, 2024 2:41 PM

Germany to resume cooperation with Palestinian UNRWA agency

The German government plans to resume cooperation with the UN agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) in Gaza, the foreign and development ministries said in a joint statement on Wednesday. The decision follows an investigation by the former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna into whether some UNRWA employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. The Colonna-led review of the agency's neutrality on Monday concluded Israel had yet to back up its accusations that hundreds of UNRWA staff we...

April 18, 2024 3:50 PM

India’s FY24 pulses imports hit 6-year high as red lentil purchases jump

India's pulses imports in fiscal 2024 surged 84% year-on-year to their highest level in six years after lower production prompted India to allow duty-free imports of red lentils and yellow peas, government and industry officials said on Thursday. Higher imports by India, the world's biggest importer, producer and consumer of protein-rich pulses, have been supporting global prices and helping bring down stocks in exporting countries such as Canada, Australia, and Myanmar. India imported...

BONDI JUNCTION, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 13: NSW police and shopping centre staff are seen outside Westfield Bondi Junction on April 13, 2024 in Bondi Junction, Australia. Six victims, plus the offender, are confirmed dead following an incident at Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction, Sydney. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

April 15, 2024 3:35 PM

Australian police say Sydney knife attacker may have targeted women

Australian police on Monday said the attacker who fatally stabbed six people at a busy shopping centre in Sydney's beach suburb of Bondi may have targeted women, as the country mourned the victims and hundreds of people laid flowers near the scene. In the attack on Saturday, five of the six people killed and the majority of the 12 injured were women. Police said on Monday they had finished taking physical evidence at the Westfield Bondi Junction mall. "It's obvious to me, it's obvious to detec...