Narendra Modi's Popularity Soars in Australia and India.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was welcomed by around 20,000 cheering fans at a Sydney stadium during his second visit to Australia as his country’s leader. Modi expects trade between the two countries will double in the next five years and wants to take India’s relationship with Australia to the “next level,” including closer defense and security ties to help ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region. Australia will host naval exercises involving India, the United States and Japan called Malabar for the first time this year in another sign of a deepening commitment to the Quad. Negotiations on a free trade deal between India and Australia are expected to be completed before the end of the year.