The United States and its allies in the Indo-Pacific announced a new partnership focused on maritime security, port infrastructure, and energy, a move widely seen as a way to counter China’s influence in the region.
The foreign ministers of the four countries that are part of the so-called Quad, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, unveiled this new cooperation after a meeting in New Delhi.
Following the meeting, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the four will work on surveillance capabilities, strengthen real-time information sharing across the region, and plan to update port infrastructure in Fiji as a first joint cooperative effort.
Rubio said that this partnership is “a linchpin in a cornerstone of our global strategy as a nation.” Before the meeting, Rubio spoke about the need for the Quad to become more active and engaged in maritime security and mineral resources. He also revamped the idea of a meeting with the four leaders of the countries, after a meeting last year in India was cancelled amid worsening US-India relations due to American tariffs.
India has been monitoring how close the US was getting to China after the highly anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The meeting’s outcome did not worry India, as it also separately signed a deal to strengthen cooperation on crucial minerals.
China is the main raison d’être for the group, especially because of what other countries see as Beijing’s aggressive policy in the South China Sea, with accusations of advancing maritime territorial claims. Accusations that China has always rebuked, saying that it only engages in defensive-oriented military actions.
After the meeting, China’s foreign minister was asked by journalists about Beijing’s position on this strengthened cooperation. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told reporters that “any cooperation should not undermine mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries.” She also added that cooperation among countries should focus on regional peace and stability, rather than targeting third countries.
This article used information from The Associated Press.
