Quad nations hold virtual meeting to review progress of initiatives agreed in October

Foreign Ministers of India, Japan, and the United States and senior officials from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade held a virtual meeting on December 18. The officials met to review the progress of the initiatives agreed by them during the QUAD meeting of Foreign Ministers in October this year. The senior officials reviewed the progress of their respective countries' efforts and also discussed the importance of deploying safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines in the region as soon as it becomes available.  

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According to Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs, the officials also shared strategic assessments of their respective visions for the Indo-Pacific, where rule of law and other norms of democracy are respected as countries engage with each other. The security in the Indo-Pacific was discussed at the meeting keeping in mind the increasingly aggressive behaviour of China in the region. 

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"We underscored our commitment to working together, and with regional partners, to support an open, inclusive, and resilient Indo-Pacific. Quad partners are focused on strengthening the resilience of regional supply chains, countering disinformation, and promoting quality infrastructure investment, including in the Mekong sub-region," a press release from the Australian Foreign Affairs Ministry said. 

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To meet regularly in 2021

At the meeting, it was decided that QUAD partners will continue to meet regularly at ministerial and senior officials’ levels in 2021 as well. Earlier this year, the Foreign Minister of India, Japan, Australia, and the United States met in Tokyo to discuss the ways of strengthening security in the Indo-Pacific region and other issues of mutual concerns, including China. A month later, the Navies of all four countries participated in Malabar maritime exercise hosted by India, which saw Australia's participation for the first time in more than 10 years.  

The Quad meeting in October had come amid the heightened tensions between the United States and China. The grouping is counter to China's growing military ambitions in the Indo-pacific region. The skirmishes with India at the Himalayan border, the dispute with Japan in the East China Sea over the Senkaku islands, and souring relations between Beijing and Canberra also made the meeting an important development for all the countries involved. 

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