Page 6 - Australia

Australian minister links mine blasting of rock shelters to Taliban

An Australian minister likened a mining company blasting ancient rock shelters to the Taliban's destruction of giant Buddha carvings and vowed Thursday to improve protections of Indigenous cultural heritage. Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said Rio Tinto acted lawfully in 2020 when it destroyed two rock shelters in Juukan Gorge in Western Australia state that had been inhabited for 46,000 years. She said Australia's laws would be updated to prevent such destruction of Indigenous sacred sites happening again. It is unthinkable that any culture would knowingly destroy Stonehenge or the Egyptian pyramids or the Lascaux caves in France, Plibersek told Parliament. When the Bamyan Buddhas were destroyed in Afghanistan, the world was rightly outraged. But that's precisely what occurred in Juukan Gorge, she added. Two 1,500-year-old giant Buddhas carved into a cliffside in the Bamyan Valley in Afghanistan were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 because the statues were considered to be

Were punished by our mistakes, says Australian coach after loss to France

Following the loss to France in their FIFA World Cup 2022 opener, Australia coach Graham Arnold said the quality of their opponents contributed to their win and his side was punished by their mistakes

Defending champions France rally from a goal down to trounce Australia 4-1

A brace by Olivier Giroud and a goal each by Adrien Rabiot, and Kylian Mbappe helped defending champions France to carve out an emphatic 4-1 win over Australia

Australian Parliament clears path for free trade agreement with India

Both nations prepare for New Year roll-out; DTAA with New Delhi amended, too

Australian Parliament okays FTA with India; to help double bilateral trade

The agreement, once implemented, will provide duty-free access to the Australian market for over 6,000 broad sectors of India, including textiles, leather, furniture, jewellery and machinery

Australia Post restarts receiving international sea mail after suspension

The recent inconvenience to some customers during the festival season prompted the company to resume sea mail deliveries

FIFA World Cup Group C and D analysis: Argentina, Denmark to make headlines

FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar: Here's a detailed analysis of which two teams will qualify for the knockouts from Group C and D of the tournament

Australia reports 38% spike in new Covid cases amid fourth pandemic wave

An average of 10,799 new infections were reported nationally every day in the week to Friday, reports Xinhua

Australian PM Anthony Albanese to visit India next March to lock trade deal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Australia next year for the Quad Leaders' meeting. And then he will return to India later in the year for the G20 Summit, a statement by the Australian PM said.

India, Australia to identify companies in critical mineral space

In the critical minerals space, Australia is the world's largest producer of lithium and the second largest producer of rare-earth elements

NMDC in talks to invest in lithium exploration companies in Australia

Investment would be voa NMDC's Perth-based arm, Legacy Iron Ore, which is already prospecting for iron ore, gold and base metals there

COP27: Australia announces to sign up with global offshore wind alliance

The alliance aims to increase the global capacity of offshore wind power generation from about 60 gigawatts (GW) currently to 380 GW by 2030

Hockey India names 23-member Indian men's team for Australia tour

Experienced dragflicker Harmanpreet Singh will lead a 23-member Indian men's hockey team in the upcoming tour of Australia, Hockey India said on Tuesday. India will play five matches against Australia, beginning November 26 in Adelaide, as part of their preparation for next year's World Cup. The FIH showpiece will be held from January 13 to 29 in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. While Harmanpreet will lead the team, Amit Rohidas has been picked as the vice-captain for the upcoming matches. "The upcoming tour to Australia is a good opportunity for us to test ourselves against one of the top contenders at the upcoming FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup Bhubaneswar-Rourkela 2023," Indian hockey chief coach Graham Reid said in a release. "We have picked a solid line of experienced players who we believe can help us in getting the desired results. We have also infused the team with a blend of youngsters to give them exposure of top-level competition and test the depth of our squad." In the fo

Coronavirus cases increase in Australia amid warnings of new wave

Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly recently urged Australians to take additional precautions to maximise their protection

Twitter Blue 'verification' rolled out in India, to cost Rs 719 per month

On November 1, Musk said that the subscription pack would be 'adjusted by country proportionate to purchasing power parity'

Australian PM Anthony wants to ask China's Xi to lift trade barriers

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday he'd ask Chinese President Xi Jinping to lift billions of dollars in trade barriers if the two leaders hold their first bilateral meeting this month. Albanese was speaking in Sydney before departing Australia on Friday for an East Asia Summit in Cambodia, followed by a Group of 20 meeting in Indonesia, then an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum meeting in Thailand. A face-to-face meeting between the Chinese and Australian leaders would mark a major reset in a bilateral relationship that plumbed new depths under the nine-year rule of Australia's previous conservative government. Beijing had banned minister-to-minister contacts and imposed a series of official and unofficial trade barriers on products including wine, coal, beef, seafood and barley in recent years that cost Australian exporters 20 billion Australian dollars ($13 billion) a year. Albanese said a meeting with Xi was not locked in at this point in time. But .

Aus to stop ex-military pilots flying for China; Britain shares concern

Australia's defence minister said on Wednesday he had told the nation's military to review secrecy safeguards in response to concerns that Beijing was recruiting pilots to train the Chinese People's Liberation Army. Defence Minister Richard Marles ordered the review after asking the Defence Department last month to investigate reports that China had approached former Australian military personnel to become trainers. In the information that has now been provided to me by Defence, there are enough concerns in my mind that I have asked Defence to engage in a detailed examination about the policies and procedures that apply to our former Defence personnel, and particularly those who come into possession of our nation's secrets, Marles told reporters. Marles declined to say whether any Australian had provided military training to the Chinese. He said a joint police-intelligence service task force was investigating a number of cases among former service personnel. What we are focused on

How China is secretly headhunting foreign pilots to train its air force

The pilots being hired by China have experience flying across various branches of the military with varied jets, including Typhoons, Jaguars, Harriers, and Tornadoes

Intellectual property on the food platter? Proof is in the pudding

While some restaurants abroad have successfully protected their recipes, prior art can prove to be a hurdle in patenting innovative cuisine

Kohli named ICC player of month for October following stellar performances

Star batter Virat Kohli was on Monday named the ICC Men's Player of the Month for October following a series of stellar performances during India's charge to the T20 World Cup semifinals in Australia. Pakistan's veteran all-rounder Nida Dar won the honour in the women's category thanks to her sensational form in their Asia Cup campaign. Dar edged out the Indian duo of Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma, who produced impressive displays in the same tournament which their side won. Both Kohli and Dar were declared winners following a global vote conducted among media representatives, ICC Hall of Famers, former international players and registered fans. Kohli won his first Player of the Month award after scoring 205 runs with the bat, showcasing the full array of his batting talent throughout October. Apart from scoring a brilliant half-century against Netherlands in Sydney, he produced an unforgettable innings in the stunning victory over Pakistan in front of a capacity crowd at the