Consolidating the Quad for a stable Indo-Pacific

The Quad today is a key platform for ensuring progress, prosperity, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Quad's senior officers meeting (SOM), held in New Delhi on September 5-6, is sure to offer a lot of vital inputs to the leaderships of India, the United States, Japan and Australia, members of the group, and to prove highly meaningful in consolidating their ties.

Observers say that under this forum, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Joint Secretary (Americas) Vani Rao had a highly meaningful meeting with US Assistant Secretary of States for South and Central Asia Donald Lu, Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Deputy Secretary Justin Hayhurst and Director General of the Foreign Policy Bureau in Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Keiichi Ichikawa.

These senior officials reviewed projects agreed to by the leaders of the Quad nations during their summit in Tokyo this year only. They discussed the Quad's famous vaccine initiative, cooperation on emerging technologies, infrastructure funding for Indo-Pacific countries, and projects to counter climate change in vulnerable regions.

The Quad vaccine initiative was announced in March 2021. Its original plan was to manufacture one billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines by the end of 2023. The plan has not taken off. India refused to give an indemnity waiver for the American-developed vaccines. There has also been a shrinking demand for the vaccines. Most of the Indo-Pacific countries have already completed their COVID-19 inoculation schedules.

Importantly, the SOM shared concerns over communist China's aggressive moves in the Indian Ocean Region and the Pacific Island countries. This is very natural. The Indo-Pacific region accounts for 60 per cent of the global GDP. Over 60 percent of global maritime trade is conducted through the waters in the region.

To India, the United States, Japan and Australia, the Quad today is a key platform for ensuring progress, prosperity, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region. China's designs in the region constitute a threat to this platform. India and other members of the Quad need to come together and have such policies and strategies as would checkmate the dragon and help realize the Quad's vision for a free, open & inclusive Indo-Pacific.

Pertinently, India today is concentrating on becoming a developed country by 2047. It attaches great importance to its strategic independence and economic strength. There is a near consensus across the Indian strategic spectrum that New Delhi must proceed with prioritizing its strategic independence and building its economy. Washington respects India's tradition of strategic autonomy. It does not seek to pull New Delhi into any security alliance. It just seeks to build a partnership with India (and other nations) through the Quad to ensure the freedom of navigation for smooth trade and commerce in the Indo-Pacific region.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.