New Delhi [India], July 6 (ANI): Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Australia, Australian High Commissioner Philip Green on Monday said Canberra supports India’s territorial integrity, and is looking to further strengthen cooperation with India in defence, education and other key sectors.
Speaking to ANI, Green identified three pillars of partnership and said, “Our relationship is impelled forward by the three areas of strategic alignment. Firstly, in the area of defence and security, secondly because our economies are so complementary… and third because there are now more than a million people of Indian origin in Australia.”
He said that the two leaders may explore greater defence cooperation where the strategic interests of both countries converge.
“I’ll leave it to the leaders to make the announcements… There’s lots of areas where we can and will make progress on defence, but perhaps where it matters most is where Australia and India’s strategic geography overlap. And that is in the Indian Ocean… I think that the leaders may well engage on how it is that we might work more together in that domain,” he said.
The High Commissioner underlined how in the last five years India’s exports to Australia have grown by 200 per cent, and that with the West Asia conflict in the backdrop, the two countries are also attentive to energy security.
“In the last five years…. India’s exports to Australia have grown by 200%, five times faster than the rest of the world. About uranium, I’d put it in this frame off the back of the Gulf War crisis, all of us are thinking about the security of energy supplies. Between Australia and India, we already have a good flow, whether it’s coal, diesel, aviation fuel, LNG. I think there’ll be a conversation about how we maximise the benefits to our bilateral and to our people of the flow of energy.”
He further noted that the education sector has been identified as one of the four priority areas for expanding bilateral cooperation, alongside agri and food, tourism, and the green energy supply chain.
Addressing the concerns over visa delays for Indian students, he urged applicants to submit complete applications to facilitate quicker processing and said Australia remains keen to attract Indian students.
“What is important for us is that we continue to get a good flow of high-quality Indian students who make a big contribution to our educational life,” he added.
On the issue of Khalistani extremism, Green said Australia does not support the separatist movement and remains committed to India’s territorial integrity.
“Australia has no truck with Khalistani separatist movement. We support an India of territorial integrity. We take seriously India’s interests to ensure that India’s diplomatic premises are secure and that a visit like this goes off without a hitch,” he said.
He added that while peaceful protests are part of Australia’s democratic framework, authorities expect Prime Minister Modi’s visit to proceed smoothly.
“In Australia, protest, if it’s peaceful, is part of our democracy. I expect that we’ll have a very smooth visit and that Prime Minister Modi will enjoy his engagement in Australia,” Green said. (ANI)
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