The View From India | The Quad’s message to China

The Foreign Ministers of the Australia-India-Japan-United States Quad, who met in Melbourne on Friday for their fourth ministerial meeting, announced a number of initiatives that underlined the grouping’s widening scope, from speeding up the delivery of more than a billion Covid vaccines to be manufactured in India and holding a special meet on climate change this year, to stepping up efforts to ensure maritime security in the region. They also announced plans for a Quad summit including Prime Minister Modi, U.S. President Biden and Australian PM Morrison to be hosted by Japan’s PM Kishida in Tokyo in the first half of 2022.

The Quad also made a veiled reference to China’s actions in the South and East China seas, reaffirming a commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific “in which states strive to protect the interests of their people, free from coercion.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry, expectedly, issued a response calling the Quad “only a tool to contain China” and “a deliberate move to stoke confrontation and undermine international solidarity and cooperation”.

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Speaking in Melbourne, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said China’s decision to amass troops along the Line of Actual Control was a violation of its written commitments and said Beijing’s behaviour was an issue of concern for the international community. That comment drew a sharp reaction from Beijing on Monday, which said it hoped India would not make “irresponsible remarks” on the border situation and that both sides “should follow through on agreements”.

The Hindu’s Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar looked at the main takeaways from the meeting – the points of agreement as well as issues including the crisis in Ukraine where the four aren’t exactly on the same page. Haidar argues that what seems clear is that the Quad remains strong on its Indo-Pacific commitments, but the worldviews of the 4 Quad partners is far from the same. You can read or watch her analysis of the meeting here.

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Speaking to The Hindu, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, on his India visit, said India’s support has made a “world of difference” to Sri Lanka’s economic situation, making it clear that the flurry of agreements announced in recent weeks have allowed the neighbours to move on from the problems of the “immediate past”. He cautioned, however that the unresolved conflict over fishing rights is a “constant irritant” in bilateral relations, and the recent clashes between Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen that led to the death of two Sri Lankans, was a “flashpoint” in ties that he hopes to resolve through talks.