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A commemorative photograph taken at a Quad meeting in Tokyo in Oct. 2019 shows (from left) Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and then-US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (AP/Yonhap News)

The Joe Biden administration in the US is pursuing a first summit for its four-country “Quad” national security forum together with Japan, Australia and India, the Yomiuri Shimbun and other Japanese news outlets reported on Feb. 7.

This marks the first attempt to organize a Quad summit. Two past meetings have been held among foreign ministers from the four participating countries.

The Yomiuri Shimbun explained that the summit “is aimed at affirming partnership toward achieving a ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ amid China’s attempts to use force to change the status quo.”

Following the Biden administration’s previous announcement that it plans to carry on the Quad framework developed under predecessor Donald Trump, the pursuit of a summit suggests the forum is gaining some momentum.

At a Jan. 29 US Institute of Peace event, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan — a key figure in the Biden administration’s foreign affairs and national security lineup — announced plans to “carry forward and build on” the Quad format and mechanism.

“[W]e see [the Quad] as a foundation upon which to build substantial American policy in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said during the event.

In a Jan. 28 telephone summit with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Biden also agreed on plans to strengthen Quad-related cooperation.

Kyodo News predicted that if the summit does happen, the focus will be on discussing a response to China’s maritime activities. Other issues that are likely to be addressed include the COVID-19 pandemic and Chinese human rights issues in regions such as Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

But with the four countries showing differing levels of enthusiasm for strengthening bonds within the Quad framework, observers are predicting that more deliberation will be needed before the summit can be arranged.

The Sankei Shimbun newspaper noted, “India has shown signs of wanting to avoid a situation that would needlessly provoke China, and it remained relatively passive at the meeting of the four countries’ foreign ministers.” It also quoted a Japanese government official as saying, “We’re looking closely at India’s reaction to the [idea of a] summit.”

Kyodo News said, “While the US has called on each of the other countries to take part in a Quad summit, it appears likely to hinge on the response from India, which has distanced itself somewhat from the other three in terms of China policy.”

The first Quad meeting was held in New York in Sept. 2019. An agreement to hold regular meetings was reached at another meeting in Tokyo last October.

By Kim So-youn, staff reporter

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