Scott Morrison has told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Russia must be "held to account" for its invasion of Ukraine during a key virtual summit between the two leaders.
The catastrophic war in Ukraine has exposed divisions between India and other members of the Quad — Australia, the United States and Japan – which have all hit Russia with sanctions and provided military and financial assistance to Ukraine to help it repel the invasion.
But India remains reliant on Russia for defence equipment and key military technology.
While Mr Modi has called for peace in Ukraine, India has not criticised Russia's invasion and has abstained from several key United Nations votes condemning Vladimir Putin's aggression.
Australia has not publicly criticised India over its stance, partly because it accepts New Delhi remains reliant on Russia in key sectors, and partly because officials believe trying to ramp up pressure on India would just stir resentment in New Delhi.
Japan has also walked a careful line, nudging India to take a more forceful stance without directly criticising its current position on the Russian invasion.
After meeting Mr Modi on Saturday, Japan's Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, said Russia's invasion shook "the very foundations of the international order" and demanded a "firm" response.
Mr Morrison also used his opening remarks at his meeting with Mr Modi to draw attention back to Ukraine and to stress the magnitude of the crisis.
"Our meeting today is, of course, set against the very distressing backdrop of the war in Europe which must never happen in our own region," he said.
"I think our Quad leaders' call recently … gave us the opportunity to discuss Russia's unlawful invasion of Ukraine, but it also gave us the opportunity to discuss the implications and consequences of that terrible event for our own region in the Indo-Pacific and the coercion and issues we face here."
But he also acknowledged the Quad's key focus was the immediate region, stressing the importance of maintaining cooperation between democracies in the Indo-Pacific and saying Mr Modi had shown "leadership" by "keeping us focused on those important issues".
After the summit, India's Foreign Secretary, Harsh V Shringla, played down the differences between the two leaders on the issue, saying Australia "understood" India's position on Ukraine.
"There was serious concern on the ongoing conflict and the humanitarian situation in Ukraine. This was something both leaders spoke about, and the need for cessation in hostilities in that regard."
Degree recognition for Indian students on the cards
Mr Morrison and Mr Modi also unveiled a host of new agreements, with Australia investing more than $200 million in a host of new initiatives covering cooperation across a range of areas including defence, renewable energy, skills and training, electric vehicles, and critical mineral production.
The government will also create a new Centre for Australia-India relations designed to boost business ties, and plunge $25 million into a space cooperation program.
In a potentially significant development for the vast Indian diaspora in Australia, the two countries also agreed to begin a process which could see them mutually recognise university degrees in the future.
"This is very important for us because of the number of Indian students in Australia. Mutual recognition means you can do a degree in Australia, and it'll be recognised in India as well."
A mutual recognition agreement could also have big implications for Indian migrants, who make up the second-largest migrant group in Australia.
There are more than 722,000 Australians of Indian origin and that figure is set to surpass more than 800,000 by mid-2022.
New migrants often face a number of battles to getting work, and the Federation of Ethnic Communities Council of Australia has previously said qualification recognition is often a barrier.
And while Mr Modi and Mr Morrison again pledged to deepen economic cooperation, they did not unveil a new free trade deal as predicted by some analysts.
Last year, senior ministers told officials to try to strike an interim or "early harvest" agreement before the end of 2021. Both countries say they have made real progress in negotiations — despite that deadline sailing by — and have suggested that an announcement is imminent.
Mr Morrison said both countries would "redouble" efforts to get an interim agreement to "unlock new opportunities" while Mr Modi declared they would reach a deal "very soon".
