In fact it will also be their first Summit meeting of leaders face to face since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, Sri Lanka plunging into economic crises, Australia voting for the new Prime Minister, etc. The world order in the Indo-Pacific region is rapidly changing and in these circumstances, it is important for these four countries to meet and commit to support an open, inclusive and resilient region.
One of the primary focuses of the Quad is the Indo-Pacific region and naturally when the leaders sit together they would talk about developments in the Indo-Pacific region, challenges in the Indo-Pacific region and the areas of concern, mentioned the Indian External Affairs Secretary Vinay Kwatra in his recent media briefing ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Tokyo. In Japan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold bilateral talks with US President Joe Biden apart from his counterparts from Australia, and Japan.
The White House has confirmed the Modi-Biden bilateral meeting to be held in Japan. This will be a face-to-face meeting of Modi and Biden for the second time within a year. In September 2021, they met during the Quad summit. Moreover, the Modi-Biden bilateral meeting will be the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders in the midst of the situation arising due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis. If the Australia’s new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is able to make it to Japan, it will be Modi’s first meeting with him at the Quad Summit. The leaders are likely to focus on opportunities in partnership with other countries in the Indo-Pacific, need to work on.
Meanwhile, China reacted sharply to the upcoming Quad meeting commenting that it reeks of “military confrontation.” Media reported that during a daily news briefing on Thursday, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that countries should cooperate and promote regional peace rather than “forming exclusive cliques detrimental to mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries.” He termed the Quad grouping as “steeped in the obsolete Cold War and zero sum mentality and reeks of military confrontation” adding that “It runs counter to the trend of the times and is doomed to be rejected.”
The Indian External Affairs Secretary Vinay Kwatra while not commenting on China, noted that the two leaders Narendra Modi and Anthony Albanese are likely to ‘review India-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership’ amongst other things in their probable meeting. The two leaders will review the India-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership and exchange views on regional and global developments of mutual interest. The last bilateral meeting was held with Australian Prime Minister virtually in March this year.
Countries like Japan, Australia, India and USA (Quad) share fundamental values and are committed to strengthening a free and open international order based on the rule of law. The four countries have been promoting practical cooperation in various fields, including vaccines, infrastructure, climate change, and critical and emerging technologies, to realise a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP).” The four countries have also concurred on the importance of making positive contribution to the region and the meetings are being held regularly since November 2017.
Last time when all these Quad member countries met was on a virtual platform at the March 12 Summit in 2021 and discussed development, cooperation on the Indo-Pacific, vaccines, technology, climate change, and supply chain management. Following which the leaders also released a joint statement that has come to be known as ‘The Spirit of the Quad’. Without mentioning China, the document points towards quadrilateral cooperation against the activities of China in the Indo-Pacific region. The joint statement by no means indicated that the Quad is a military coalition but then it highlighted its core agenda to make the Indo-Pacific an inclusive, free, and open region, in which the rule of law is upheld.
For India bilateral relations with ‘like-minded’ and ‘friendly’ nations with the backdrop of the Quad can be strengthened further through information sharing agreements, arms exchange agreements, defence ties, and much more. Also, economically, India has an opportunity to showcase a preferred destination for investment, especially after the COVID-19 outbreak and India’s surge in the pharmaceutical industry and its potential to boost its pharmaceutical prowess and to assert its leadership in the post-pandemic world.
