Quad leaders renew pledge for free, open Indo-Pacific
Deccan ChronicleNew Delhi: Renewing their “steadfast commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific that is inclusive and resilient”, the Quad leaders -- the Prime Ministers of India, Japan and Australia and the US President -- met in Tokyo on Tuesday for the second in-person meeting of the four-nation group. But in a veiled signal to Russia, the statement said: “All countries must seek peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international law.” This was the fourth interaction of the Quad leaders since the first virtual meeting in March 2021, the in-person summit in Washington DC in September 2021, and their virtual interaction earlier in March this year. This will further strengthen the image of the Quad as a force for good.” Apart from the discussions on Russia and China, the Quad partners took several important decisions on maritime information sharing, infrastructure that included possible assistance of more than $50 billion to the Indo-Pacific region in the next five years, cyber-security, space cooperation and the Quad Covid vaccine initiatives, along with a commitment to address the debt issues of countries, something that could be of direct relevance to cash-strapped countries like Sri Lanka that have a huge Chinese financial debt. According to the joint statement, the “Q-CHAMP includes ongoing activities under the Quad Climate Working Group on green shipping and ports, aiming for a shared green corridor framework building on each Quad country’s input.” On vaccine cooperation, the four nations said: “We welcome the progress on the expansion of J&J vaccine production at the Biological E facility in India under the Quad Vaccine Partnership.