New Delhi/Melbourne, (Asian independent) The Foreign Ministers of Australia, India, and Japan, and the US Secretary of State met in Melbourne on Friday for the fourth Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, where they reaffirmed their commitment to supporting efforts to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific – a region which is inclusive and resilient, and in which states strive to protect the interests of their people, free from coercion.
The Quad Foreign Ministers deliberated on regional challenges, including humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR), maritime security, counter-terrorism, countering disinformation, and cyber security. It was also decided that Japan is going to host the next Quad Leaders’ Summit in the first half of 2022.
The Quad recognises that international law, peace, and security in the maritime domain underpins the development and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific and reiterates the importance of adherence to international law, particularly as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to meet challenges to the maritime rules-based order, including in the South and East China Seas with deepened engagement with regional partners, including through capacity-building and technical assistance, to strengthen maritime domain awareness, protect their ability to develop offshore resources, consistent with UNCLOS, ensure freedom of navigation and overflight, combat challenges, such as illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, and promote the safety and security of sea lanes of communication, read the joint statement issued after the meeting.
The Quad is exchanging information on ever-evolving threats and working with Indo-Pacific countries, and in multilateral fora, to counter all forms of terrorism and violent extremism and denounces the use of terrorist proxies for cross-border terrorism and urges countries to work together to eliminate terrorist safe havens, disrupt terrorist networks and the infrastructure and financial channels which sustain them, and halt cross-border movement of terrorists, it said.
In this context, Quad reiterates its condemnation of terrorist attacks in India, including the 26/11 Mumbai and Pathankot attacks and reaffirms UNSC Resolution 2593 (2021) that Afghan territory should not be used to threaten or attack any country, shelter or train terrorists, or plan or finance terrorist acts, with such ungoverned spaces being a direct threat to the safety and security of the Indo-Pacific, said the joint statement.
As unwavering supporters of ASEAN unity and centrality, and the ASEAN-led architecture, Quad continues to support ASEAN partners to advance the practical implementation of ASEAN’s Outlook on the Indo-Pacific. Quad acknowledges the importance of sub-regional mechanisms and institutions, including in the Mekong sub-region. and will continue to support Cambodia in its important role as 2022 ASEAN Chair, it added.
In the meeting, it was noted that the Quad partners have collectively provided more than 500 million vaccine doses, and have pledged to donate more than 1.3 billion vaccine doses globally. It alo noted the Quad Vaccine Partnership’s rapid progress in expanding vaccine production at the Biological E Ltd facility in India, which aims to deliver at least 1 billion vaccines by the end of 2022. Quad is also assisting to train healthcare workers, combat vaccine hesitancy, and augment infrastructure, especially cold chain systems, for ‘last mile’ vaccine delivery.
“We welcome the timely initiative for coordinating the response to combat the Covid pandemic under a Global Action Plan for Enhanced Engagement,” the statement said.
