Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday met Australian High Commissioner to India Philip Green and Professor Susan Marks of the London School of Economics (LSE) in New Delhi.

The meeting was disclosed by the All India Congress Committee (AICC), which shared details of the interaction between the Congress leader, the senior Australian diplomat and the noted international law academic.

Professor Susan Marks is one of the leading scholars in the field of international law and human rights studies. She joined the London School of Economics in 2010 as Professor of International Law after previously serving at King's College London.

Before her tenure at King's College London, she taught at the University of Cambridge, where she was a Fellow of Emmanuel College.

Her academic work has focused extensively on international law, democracy, human rights, dignity, poverty, legal theory and the evolution of global governance frameworks. According to LSE, her scholarship seeks to bring insights from the radical intellectual tradition into the study of international law and human rights.

Marks is also a Fellow of the British Academy, one of the United Kingdom's highest academic distinctions in the humanities and social sciences. She was elected to the fellowship in 2023.

The meeting also drew attention because of Philip Green's prominent role in advancing India-Australia relations at a time when ties between the two countries are expanding across diplomacy, trade, technology, education, space cooperation and Indo-Pacific security.

Green, a senior Australian diplomat, has served in several major international postings, including Germany, Singapore, South Africa and Kenya before becoming Australia's High Commissioner to India in 2023.

The interaction with Rahul Gandhi came shortly after Green publicly praised India's growing influence on global affairs and highlighted New Delhi's increasingly important diplomatic role.

Earlier this month, Green described Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as leaders with significant standing on the world stage. He said the Ministry of External Affairs possesses some of the finest diplomats globally and credited both Modi and Jaishankar for enhancing India's international profile.

Green also noted that Australia's engagement with India has accelerated both through bilateral mechanisms and through the Quad grouping, which includes India, Australia, Japan and the United States.

According to him, the Quad is progressing rapidly and is becoming increasingly coordinated in its activities and objectives. He referred to the Quad Foreign Ministers' meeting held in India earlier this year and said the grouping continues to expand its scale, coherence and areas of cooperation.

Green stated that additional ministerial engagements are expected as the four countries deepen collaboration across strategic sectors. Discussing the Quad's Indo-Pacific agenda, the Australian envoy pointed to practical initiatives that can deliver measurable benefits across the region.

Among the priority areas identified were maritime domain awareness, strengthening regional connectivity and the protection and expansion of subsea cable networks. He also referenced the recent Quad tabletop exercise in Tokyo focused on advancing the Indo-Pacific Logistics Network.

According to Green, these initiatives demonstrate the Quad's intention to provide practical solutions and strengthen regional resilience. The Australian diplomat described India, Australia, Japan and the United States as a "democracy diamond" and said the four nations are playing a leading role in shaping a stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.

He emphasised that the effort is strategically significant for the future of the region and its economic and security architecture. On the bilateral front, Green highlighted agriculture and agri-tech as major areas for future India-Australia cooperation. He noted that Australia has already contributed significantly to agricultural development initiatives in India and expressed interest in expanding that engagement further.

Green said ongoing free trade discussions and sector-specific partnerships could create new opportunities to connect Australian agri-tech expertise with Indian requirements and capabilities.

Technology and healthcare were also identified as sectors with substantial potential for greater collaboration between the two countries. In the healthcare domain, Green drew attention to cochlear implant technology, which originated in Australia and has transformed treatment options for people affected by profound hearing loss.

He noted that variants of the technology are available in India and have been adapted to suit local requirements. Green said wider adoption of such medical innovations could significantly improve quality of life and enable individuals with severe hearing impairments to lead normal lives.

The meeting between Rahul Gandhi, Philip Green and Susan Marks therefore occurred against the backdrop of steadily expanding India-Australia ties, stronger engagement through the Quad, growing cooperation in agriculture, healthcare, advanced technology and education, and continuing discussions on the evolving international order.

The interaction also brought together key figures from politics, diplomacy and academia, reflecting the increasing importance of dialogue between political leaders, foreign policy practitioners and international scholars as India strengthens its role in global affairs.

ANI