Quad foreign ministers to meet in Australia on Friday amid Ukraine crisis
India Today
A crucial meeting of the foreign ministers of the Quad countries will take place in Melbourne on Friday in the backdrop of increasing tension between Russia and NATO countries over Ukraine and other matters.
The foreign ministers of the Quad countries will hold a crucial meeting in Melbourne on Friday in the backdrop of increasing tension between Russia and NATO countries over Ukraine, the Afghan crisis and rising concerns over China's muscle-flexing in the Indo-Pacific region.
A day ahead of the talks, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Thursday that the meeting will focus on coronavirus vaccine distribution, countering terrorism and cooperation in maritime security and climate change.
Payne also talked about the need for ensuring that all Indo-Pacific nations are able to make their own strategic decisions, free from coercion, seen as a veiled reference to China's increasing assertiveness in the region.
The meeting, being hosted by Payne, will be attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa, and it is expected to focus on significantly shoring up cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.
The Australian foreign minister said she was looking forward to welcoming her counterparts from India, the US and Japan to "discuss our positive and ambitious agenda in support of a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific".
"Together we are a vital network of liberal democracies committed to practical cooperation and to ensuring all Indo-Pacific nations, large and small, are able to make their own strategic decisions, free from coercion," she said in a statement.
She further said: "We will discuss our work together on vaccine distribution in our region, cyber and critical technology, countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, humanitarian and disaster response, and climate change."
