Two democracies that have long watched the same ocean have decided that the wires, chips, minerals and code beneath modern life are now part of their shared defence. In a year marked by unsettled global order, India and Australia have launched PACTS, a partnership on cyber security, critical technology and supply chains that grows out of a 2020 framework and folds into a wider defence declaration signed by their prime ministers. It is an attempt to treat digital trust, emerging science and the dependable movement of goods as one問題 of national security, economic life and shared values, and its
India and Australia Launch PACTS to Deepen Cyber, Tech and Supply Chain Cooperation
The next big battlegrounds are digital and economic, not just military
Mark
What is PACTS, in plain terms?
Mimi
A partnership between India and Australia on cyber, critical technologies and supply chains, announced within a wider defence declaration signed by their prime ministers in 2026.
Mark
Is it new?
Mimi
Partly. It replaces a 2020 cyber cooperation framework and builds on it, with five pillars instead of a single arrangement.
Luke
Worth noting that the pillars describe intentions. Things like a trusted vendor framework or a cyber skills hub are listed as plans, not as things already built.
Mark
Who runs it?
Mimi
Australia's Deputy Secretary of the International and Security Group and India's Deputy National Security Advisor lead it, with an annual Senior Officials' Meeting.
Mark
Why include digital public infrastructure?
Mimi
India's identity and payments systems are the model, and the plan is pilots in areas like health, education and clean energy across the Indo-Pacific.
Luke
The reporting doesn't say which countries would host pilots, what they'd cost, or any timelines. Those are unknown.
Mark
So what should a reader watch?
Mimi
Whether the annual meetings produce named projects and joint research, especially on maritime surveillance and advanced materials.
Le Pouls
- A global climate of uncertainty is pushing two Indo-Pacific partners to stop treating cyber, technology and supply chains as separate worries.
- PACTS replaces the 2020 cyber framework with a sweeping five-pillar partnership, widening what was once a narrow channel into a structured program.
- Officials are moving to secure undersea cables, semiconductors and critical minerals, aiming to reduce dependence on any single source.
- Leaders are tying the partnership to a larger defence declaration covering exercises, intelligence sharing and maritime security.
- The next test is the annual Senior Officials' Meeting, where concrete pilots and joint research must replace broad commitments.
Two democracies that have long watched the same ocean have decided that the wires, chips, minerals and code beneath modern life are now part of their shared defence. In a year marked by unsettled global order, India and Australia have launched PACTS, a partnership on cyber security, critical technology and supply chains that grows out of a 2020 framework and folds into a wider defence declaration signed by their prime ministers. It is an attempt to treat digital trust, emerging science and the dependable movement of goods as one問題 of national security, economic life and shared values, and its success will be measured less by its ambition on paper than by what the two sides actually build together in the years ahead.
India and Australia have launched PACTS, a new partnership on cyber security, critical technologies and supply chains. It was announced as part of a wider defence and security agreement between their prime ministers, and it commits both governments to work together on online safety, sensitive new technologies and the supplies each relies on.
The partnership grows from earlier ground. In 2020 the two countries set up a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and PACTS replaces their 2020 cyber framework with something larger and more structured. Both governments see these issues as central to national security, economic growth and shared values, so they have combined them into five pillars rather than handling them apart.
The pillars cover supply chain resilience, including trusted vendors, undersea cables, semiconductors and critical minerals; critical technologies such as AI, space and biotechnology; cybersecurity, with a more direct channel and a cyber skills hub; digital public infrastructure, drawing on India's identity and payments systems for pilot projects across the region; and defence research linking Australia's DSTG with India's DRDO. Two senior officials will lead the work, and an annual meeting will set projects and review new risks.
PACTS also sits inside a broader defence declaration promising larger joint exercises, closer military coordination, maritime security and cooperation on disasters and peacekeeping. Both countries say they want an open Indo-Pacific where no one dominates, and they will continue working with the United States, Japan and regional groupings. What comes next is whether those meetings deliver pilots and research that prove the partnership's promise.
India and Australia have launched a new partnership called PACTS, short for Partnership on Cyber, Critical Technologies and Supply Chains. It was announced as part of a larger defence and security agreement signed between the two countries' prime ministers in 2026, and it commits both governments to coordinated work on online security, sensitive new technologies and the supplies each depends on.
The arrangement builds on existing ground. In 2020 the two countries set up a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, a long-term commitment covering defence, trade and diplomacy. PACTS replaces the 2020 Framework Arrangement on Cyber and Cyber Enabled Critical Technology Cooperation and expands it. The source describes cooperation in this space as going back two decades, and PACTS is meant to make it larger, more structured and more ambitious.
Both governments say they view cyber security, emerging technology and supply chains as matters that shape national security, economic growth and even global values and norms. Rather than handling them separately, they have folded them into one partnership with five pillars. They also describe a period of global uncertainty and say they want disputes in the region resolved peacefully, in line with international law.
The first pillar, supply chain resilience and diversification, aims to reduce dependence on any single source for critical goods. It includes a shared framework for trusted vendors, work on secure undersea internet cables through the Quad's cable connectivity initiative, cooperation on semiconductor supply chains, and securing routes for critical minerals. The second, critical technology, covers artificial intelligence, space, telecommunications, biotechnology and advanced materials. The two sides say they want to help set global standards for AI that is safe, trustworthy and developed through open, democratic processes, and they plan to expand joint research and look at shared space projects.
The third pillar, cybersecurity, centres on a simpler, more direct channel between the countries for cyber and IT issues. It includes cooperation within United Nations cyber frameworks, deeper talks on data governance, more trade and investment in cyber technology, joint training workshops, and a cyber skills incubator hub for training and exchanging talent. The fourth, digital resilience, draws on India's Digital Public Infrastructure model, the large-scale systems it has built for identity verification and payments, and seeks to extend similar tools across the Indo-Pacific. Clean energy, healthcare, education and social protection are named, with pilot projects planned to test systems adaptable to local needs.
The fifth pillar, defence research collaboration, links Australia's Defence Science and Technology Group with India's Defence Research and Development Organisation. It is meant to deepen research ties, connect defence-focused startups and innovation hubs, and direct joint work toward maritime surveillance and advanced defence materials.
Leadership is assigned to two senior officials: the Australian Deputy Secretary of the International and Security Group in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and India's Deputy National Security Advisor. The countries have committed to an annual Senior Officials' Meeting to track progress, assess new risks in cyber and technology, and choose specific projects under each pillar.
PACTS sits inside a broader joint declaration on defence. That text promises larger joint military exercises, more aircraft visits, closer coordination between armed forces, and cooperation on training and recruiting skilled defence workers. It also covers maritime security, more intelligence sharing on terrorism, joint work during natural disasters, support for women in peacekeeping, and continued programs against human trafficking and irregular migration.
Both countries say they want an open, stable Indo-Pacific where no single country pushes others around, and they will keep working with the United States and Japan and support the Quad, ASEAN and the Indian Ocean Rim Association. What to watch now is whether the annual meetings produce concrete pilots and joint research results.
Citations marquantes
Both governments see cyber security, emerging technology and supply chains as shaping national security, economic growth and global norms.— India-Australia joint declaration, as reported by Republic World
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