NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 :  India, France and Australia held the Third Trilateral Focal Points Meeting, during which they reviewed the progress made under the three pillars of, maritime safety and security, marine and environmental cooperation, and multilateral engagement.

The Indian side at the talks yesterday was led by Piyush Srivastava, Joint Secretary (Europe West) and Paramita Tripathi, Joint Secretary (Oceania and Indo-Pacific), while the French side was led by Benoît Guidée, Director (Asia and Oceania), Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Australian side was led by Sarah Storey, First Assistant Secretary, South and Central Asia Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The three sides also identified new proposals for furthering the trilateral cooperation including under the framework of the Indo Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) mechanisms, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) cooperation, and multilateral engagements, a statement said.

India, Australia and France reaffirmed their commitment to advancing their shared values and working together towards a free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific, it added.(UNI)