New Delhi [India], September 15 (ANI): Australian High Commissioner to India Philip Green on Tuesday praised India’s growing role on the global stage, describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as “giants” and highlighting the growing momentum in the Quad, while also outlining opportunities for deeper India-Australia cooperation in agriculture, technology and healthcare.
Speaking to ANI on the BRICS Summit hosted by India, Green said Australia is not a member of the grouping and respects the role of India and other BRICS members.
“We’re not involved in the BRICS, and we leave that to India and the other members,” Green said.
At the same time, he lauded India’s diplomatic leadership, particularly the role played by Prime Minister Modi and EAM Jaishankar.
“The Ministry of External Affairs has some of the finest diplomats in the world, and in Dr Jaishankar and Prime Minister Modi, you have people who are real giants on the world stage,” he said.
Green said Australia’s engagement with India has primarily progressed through the bilateral relationship as well as the Quad, which brings together India, Australia, Japan and the United States.
“I can say that my engagement with your finest diplomats and your leaders has been through the Quad as well as bilaterally, and the Quad is moving at great pace,” he said.
Referring to the Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting held in India earlier this year, Green said the grouping is developing greater coherence and expanding its scale and areas of cooperation.
“You will have seen we had a very successful foreign ministers meeting here just three months ago. We have more foreign ministers meetings on the way,” he said.
“The Quad is really growing in coherence and scale and effort, and I think you’re going to see more of that in lots to come,” Green added.
On the Quad’s recent tabletop exercise in Tokyo to advance the Indo-Pacific Logistics Network, Green said the grouping is focusing on practical areas where the four countries can make a tangible difference across the region.
“Well, what we’re doing in the Quad is focusing on a few areas where we can really make a difference,” he said, highlighting maritime domain awareness and subsea cables as key areas.
“These are the sort of interventions that the Quad is making to engage all of the countries of our region and to ensure that they have the opportunity to benefit from the best things of the modern world,” he said.
Describing India, Australia, Japan and the US as a “democracy diamond”, Green said the four countries are leading an important effort for the Indo-Pacific.
“We are leading this effort, and it’s a very important one for our region, the Indo-Pacific,” he said.
On future India-Australia cooperation, Green identified agriculture and agri-tech as major areas of potential collaboration, saying Australia is keen to build on its existing engagement with India’s agricultural sector.
“We’ve made huge interventions in this country in the field of agriculture, and I’d be keen to do that again,” he said.
He said ongoing free trade negotiations and other initiatives could help connect Australian agricultural technology with India’s capabilities and requirements.
“Through our free trade negotiations and elsewhere, we’re trying to find new and better ways to connect Australian agri-tech and Indian capability and need,” Green said.
Green also highlighted the Australian-origin cochlear implant technology and its potential to transform the lives of people with profound hearing loss in India.
“The Australian connection is the cochlear implant, invented in my country, now available all over the world, with variants specifically designed for the Indian population here,” he said.
“My message to Indian governments and those with the resources to help is: we can really make a difference to people with profound hearing loss and allow them to live an utterly normal life,” Green added. (ANI)
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