Quad countries hold talks on key issues in Indo-Pacific region

Senior officials of the Quad countries - India, the US, Japan and Australia - today held consultations in Singapore on "issues of common interest" in the Indo-Pacific region such as counter-terrorism and non-proliferation, the Ministry of External Affairs said today.

The participants reaffirmed their support for a "free, open, prosperous and inclusive" Indo-Pacific Region, it said.

The officials deliberated on ways to pursue shared objectives in the areas of connectivity and development, regional security, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HARD) and maritime cooperation.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said there was regular ASEAN related senior officers meeting. Another meeting on the sidelines was also held between the Quad countries.

The meeting was attended by joint secretaries in-charge of East Asia and America.

The Indian side highlighted New Delhi's vision for the Indo-Pacific region as outlined in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's keynote address at Shangri-La Dialogue, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

"The participants reaffirmed their support for a free, open, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific Region. They also confirmed their common commitment, based on shared values and principles, to promote a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific," the statement said.

They also reaffirmed their strong support for ASEAN centrality and ASEAN-led mechanisms in the regional architecture for the Indo-Pacific and agreed to partner with all countries and institutions in the region "to promote the shared vision of a peaceful, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific, including through such plurilateral formats".

Envisaged by Japan in 2007, the Quadrilateral grouping is seen as a move to counter China.

Last year, Prime Minister Modi, his Australian and Japanese counterparts Malcom Turnbull and Shinzo Abe and US President Donald Trump, held the first Quad talks at Manila.

The leaders had agreed that a free, open, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific region serves the long-term interests of all countries in the region and of the world at large.