PM Modi likely to visit Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand in July

India's Prime Minister is expected to undertake a three-nation Indo-Pacific tour in July 2026, visiting Indonesia, New Zealand, and Australia — a significant...

What Happened

India's Prime Minister is expected to undertake a three-nation Indo-Pacific tour in July 2026, visiting Indonesia, New Zealand, and Australia — a significant diplomatic outreach to Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
The visit to Indonesia (the first leg) will centre on enhancing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, with the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile deal reported to be in its final stages of negotiation.
The New Zealand leg (July 7–8) would be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years, coinciding with the conclusion of negotiations on a bilateral Free Trade Agreement; a large diaspora event of 15,000–20,000 attendees is planned.
The Australia leg (July 9–10) will focus on uranium supply for India's civilian nuclear programme, defence cooperation, and bilateral trade; a diaspora gathering of up to 40,000 in Melbourne is anticipated.
The tour signals India's intent to deepen its Indo-Pacific architecture amid a rapidly shifting regional security landscape marked by China's growing influence and evolving US engagement.

Static Topic Bridges

India's Act East Policy and Indo-Pacific Strategy

India's Act East Policy, announced in November 2014 at the East Asia Summit in Myanmar, replaced the Look East Policy (1991) with a sharper focus on strategic and security dimensions alongside economic engagement. It prioritises connectivity, trade, cultural links, and defence cooperation with ASEAN and beyond — extending to Australia, Japan, and the Pacific island nations. The Indo-Pacific is conceptualised by India as a "free, open, inclusive, and rules-based" region — a formulation that implicitly counters China's exclusive maritime claims.

ASEAN accounts for approximately 11% of India's global trade; bilateral trade was valued at $121 billion in FY 2023–24.
India joined the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) — with the US, Japan, and Australia — as a reinvigorated format in 2017 and at summit level from 2021.
India participates in IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity), launched in Tokyo in May 2022 with 14 member countries covering 40% of global GDP; India opted out of the trade pillar but joined supply chain, clean energy, and anti-corruption pillars.
Key multilateral exercises: Malabar (India-US-Japan-Australia), MILAN (India + IOR navies), La Perouse (France-led with Quad members).

Connection to this news: The three-nation tour is a direct embodiment of Act East Policy — Indonesia (largest ASEAN economy), New Zealand (Pacific), and Australia (Quad partner and major defence/energy partner) — signalling depth and geographic breadth of India's Indo-Pacific engagement.

India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

India and Indonesia elevated their bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in 2018 during a summit visit. The CSP covers defence and security, maritime cooperation, trade and investment, digital economy, energy, health, and connectivity. Indonesia is strategically vital to India's Act East Policy given its position astride the Malacca, Sunda, and Lombok Straits — critical chokepoints for global maritime trade and India's energy imports. The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile (jointly developed by India's DRDO and Russia's NPO Mashinostroyeniya, with a range of 290–450 km) has become a flagship element of India's defence diplomacy in Southeast Asia.

India-Indonesia bilateral trade target: $50 billion by 2025 (set in 2018).
BrahMos deal with Philippines (signed 2022, $375 million) was the first export; Vietnam signed a deal in 2026.
Indonesia's BrahMos deal was reported in "final stages" as of mid-2026.
Key maritime security forum: Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), in which both India and Indonesia participate.

Connection to this news: Modi's Indonesia visit is expected to conclude or advance the BrahMos deal, representing a significant milestone in India's defence export ambitions and cementing the CSP at the highest political level.

India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and Nuclear Cooperation

India and Australia elevated ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June 2020. The relationship has deepened substantially through the Quad framework, bilateral defence exercises (Exercise Malabar, AUSINDEX, Pitch Black), and a Migration and Mobility Partnership. A critical pending issue is uranium supply: Australia holds the world's largest known uranium reserves (~30% of global reserves), and the two countries signed a Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement in 2014 following India's NSG waiver (2008), but operationalising uranium supply under IAEA safeguards has been a long-pending agenda item.

India-Australia bilateral trade: approximately AUD 45 billion in FY 2023–24.
India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) entered into force in December 2022.
Australia has supplied uranium to other non-NPT countries with NSG waivers under bilateral safeguards agreements.
AUSINDEX is the flagship bilateral naval exercise; the two countries also cooperate under the Five Eyes-adjacent intelligence-sharing arrangement.

Connection to this news: The July visit is expected to advance uranium supply negotiations and deepen Quad-aligned defence cooperation — two areas where tangible deliverables remain pending despite strong political intent.

India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement

India and New Zealand concluded FTA negotiations in 2026 after years of stalled talks, covering goods, services, investment, and mobility for professionals, students, and MSMEs. New Zealand's Indian-origin diaspora (approximately 230,000) is a growing soft-power anchor. The visit — if it takes place — would be the first by an Indian Prime Minister since 1986 (Rajiv Gandhi's visit), representing a 40-year gap that underscores the historically low priority India assigned to the Pacific island region before Act East.

New Zealand is a member of IPEF alongside India.
New Zealand's major exports to India: dairy, wool, meat; India's major exports: textiles, pharmaceuticals, IT services.
New Zealand has expressed support for India's UNSC permanent membership bid.
India-NZ bilateral trade: approximately $1.5 billion (modest, with significant growth potential under the FTA).

Connection to this news: The FTA conclusion gives the Modi visit concrete economic deliverables beyond symbolic optics, and the diaspora engagement reinforces India's soft-power outreach in the Pacific.

Key Facts & Data

Proposed tour dates: Indonesia (leg 1, date TBC), New Zealand (July 7–8), Australia (July 9–10).
Last Indian PM visit to New Zealand: 1986 (Rajiv Gandhi) — a 40-year gap.
Indonesia: largest economy in Southeast Asia, population ~280 million; member of G20.
India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership: elevated in 2018.
BrahMos missile range: 290–450 km (land-attack supersonic cruise missile, Mach 2.8).
Australia uranium reserves: ~30% of global known reserves; Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement signed 2014.
India-Australia ECTA: in force since December 2022.
IPEF launched: May 2022, Tokyo; 14 members covering 40% of global GDP.
Quad at summit level: first summit March 2021 (virtual); first in-person September 2021.