Quad Summit: Quad leaders issue joint statement following Tokyo summit

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) addresses briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Japan for the Quad Summit and bilaterals and meetings involved therein.

US President Joe Biden was caught in a trade quandary in Asia because he couldn't simply rejoin the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which his predecessor had pulled the US out of in 2017. Many linked trade agreements had become politically toxic for US voters, who connected them with job losses, regardless of their content. However, the US President came up with an alternative. Read Full Story.

Quad leaders - Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, US President Joe Biden, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, issue a joint statement after convening the Quad Summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Tuesday participated in the India-Japan bilateral meeting in Tokyo, Japan.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Tokyo. Taking to Twitter, he said, "Continued our conversation on the Ukraine conflict, its knock-on effects and important regional issues. Will work together to take forward the Quad understandings". 

Responding to India's stance on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Japanese PM Fumio Kishidan said, "In international situation, each country has its own historical developments and geographical situation. Even amongst like-minded, positions may not agree fully. But deepened mutual understanding and cooperation are crucial among Quad members. For the Ukrainian situation, amongst the 4 leaders, including India, we were able to reaffirm the importance of various principles like rule of law, sovereignty and territorial integrity and unilateral change of status quo or force shall never be allowed in any region."

Addressing a joint press briefing, US president Joe Biden stated, "I'm pleased that we've reached an agreement for US Development Finance Corporation to continue this imp work in India, supporting vaccine production, clean energy initiatives. I'm glad we're renewing the Indo-US Vaccine Action Program". Mentioning that the negative effects of the Russian invasion on Ukraine were discussed, he reiterated his commitment to deepening ties with India. 

After meeting US president Joe Biden, PM Modi observed, "We took part together in a positive and useful Quad Summit today. India and US partnership in the true sense is a partnership of trust. Our common interests and values have strengthened this bond of trust between our two countries. We share similar views on Indo-Pacific, at the bilateral level as well as with like-minded countries to work to protect our common concerns. Our discussions today will give speed to this positive momentum". 

PM Modi holds bilateral talks with US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the Quad Summit.

According to a senior official, in a closed session of Quad Summit in Tokyo, US President Joe Biden praised PM Modi for handling the pandemic successfully in a democratic manner. He contrasted India's success with China's failure to handle the pandemic, though both countries are of comparable size. Lauding PM Modi for handling the pandemic successfully in a democratic manner, he contrasted India's success with China's failure to handle pandemic, though both countries are of comparable size.

In a video message on the launch of the Quad fellowship, PM Modi said, “I encourage our students to apply for the Quad Fellowship programme and join the next generation of STEM leaders and innovators building a better future for humanity."

At the Quad Summit, PM Modi said, "Your Excellencies, Prime Minister Kishida, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Biden. Prime Minister Kishida, Thank you so much for your wonderful hospitality. It is a great pleasure for me to be among friends in Tokyo today. First of all, I congratulate Anthony Albanese on his victory in the elections. Your presence with us 24 hours after taking oath shows the power of quad friendship and your commitment to it. Your excellencies, in such a short time, the quad has made an important place on the world stage. Today the scope of the quad has broadened and the form has become dominant."

He added, "Our mutual trust and our determination are giving energy and enthusiasm to democracy. Our mutual cooperation at the level of the quad is promoting a free, open, and inclusive indo-pacific region, which is the common objective of all of us. Despite the adverse circumstances of covid 19, we have increased mutual coordination in many areas such as vaccine delivery, climate action, supply chain resilience, disaster response, and economic cooperation. This is ensuring peace, prosperity, and stability in the indo-pacific. The quad is pursuing a constructive agenda for the indo-pacific region. This will further cement quad's image as the force for good, thank you very much."

Quad leaders- PM Modi, Australian PM Anthony Albanese, US President Joe Biden and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida marked the foundation of the Quad Fellowship scholarship programme. 

Under the aegis of the Quad fellowship, 100 American, Australian, Indian, and Japanese students will be sponsored to study in the United States each year for graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The Quad Fellowship empowers exceptional STEM graduate students to advance research and innovation throughout their careers with a lens of positive social impact. It does so by providing scholarships, immersive and inspiring events at the nexus of STEM and society, mentorship and career-advancing programming, and cross-cultural exchange opportunities.

At the Tokyo Summit, the Quad leaders will welcome a major maritime initiative: the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA). In close consultations with regional partners, IPMDA will offer a near-real-time, integrated, and cost-effective maritime domain awareness picture. This initiative will transform the ability of partners in the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean region to fully monitor the waters on their shores and, in turn, to uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Delivering his opening remarks at the Quad Summit, Australian PM Anthony Albanese said, "My government is committed to working with your countries. The new Australian govt gives priority to taking action on climate change and building a more resilient Indo-Pacific region through economic, cyber, energy, health and environmental security". He elaborated, "We will act in recognition that climate change is the main economic and security challenge for the island nations of the Pacific. My government will set a new target to reduce emissions by 43% by 2030 putting us on track for net-zero emissions by 2050".

Japanese PM Fumio Kishida was the last Quad leader to deliver his opening remarks at the Summit. He stressed, "Russian invasion of Ukraine squarely challenges the principles which are enshrined in the UN Charter". He also advocated that the Quad partners listen carefully to the voices of the countries in the ASEAN, South Asia as well as the Pacific Island countries, so as to further advance cooperation, conducive to solving urgent issues facing the vision for the Indo-Pacific region. 

PM Modi delivered his opening remarks at the Quad Leaders Meeting in Tokyo. At the outset, he congratulated his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese for winning the elections. He noted, "Your presence amongst us 24 hours after taking the oath reflects the strength of the Quad friendship and your commitment towards it".

The PM added, "Quad has made an important place for itself before the world in such a short span of time. Today, Quad's scope has become extensive, its form effective. Our mutual trust and our determination are giving new energy and enthusiasm to democratic powers". He also reiterated the shared goal of a free, open and inclusive Indo Pacific Region. 

Speaking at the Quad Leaders' Summit, US president Joe Biden highlighted that this meeting is critical for the continued cooperation between the Quad countries. Focusing on the idea of a free and open Indo-Pacific region, he stressed that the Quad has a lot of work to do pertaining to security and combating the pandemic. Hitting out at his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for invading Ukraine, he emphasised that the US shall continue to work with its partners. He also expressed fears that the global food crisis may worsen as Russia has blocked Ukraine from exporting foodgrains.

Joe Biden affirmed, "The US will be a strong, steady and enduring partner in Indo-Pacific. We are Indo-Pacific powers. As long as Russia continues the war, we are going to be partners and lead a global response. We stay together for the shared values and vision we have."

This is the first QUAD meeting in 2022, the previous one was held in the virtual format in March 2021. Earlier in September 2021, Washington hosted an in-person QUAD conclave, where leaders discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and approach to mitigate sporadic outbreaks and vaccine supplies. The QUAD announced a vaccine partnership last year to deliver 1 million vaccine doses to Indo-Pacific by 2022.  Also, this will be the first QUAD meeting for newly-elected Australian PM Anthony Albanese and all eyes are on what he brings to the table.

Long-term strategic relations, promotion of a free and open Indo-Pacific region, regional peace, and the implications of the Russian war are among the key issues expected to be discussed at the QUAD Summit on May 24 in the Japanese capital city of Tokyo. The members of the QUAD -- the US, Japan, Australia, and India will also deliberate on unifying commitment to a rules-based international order as China continues to escalate its aggressive propaganda in the South East Asian region. The grouping will also share mutual views on the global issues and share values of democracy, ANI reported.

The summit is taking place amid the growing influence of China over the free and inclusiveness of the Indo-Pacific trade route. Beijing's coercive practices against Taiwan and challenging the global vision of the Indo-Pacific also have worried global leaders, especially the QUAD as it poses a serious challenge to the democratic values of the countries.

The 4-nation bloc, which is a "force for global good" has remained a strong advocate for climate action. The QUAD Infrastructure Coordination Group has discussed support for sustainable and demand-driven constructions in the Indo-Pacific region to relieve countries from unsustainable debts. Not just developmental infrastructure, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday is also expected to share India's perspective on the region and outline ways to bolster cooperation among the members on several platforms, including the supply-chain resilience. 

The leaders will also comprehensively discuss the new Asia-Pacific investment initiative that US President Joe Biden unveiled on Monday in Japan. The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) is a "commitment to working with our close friends and partners in the region on challenges that matter most to ensuring economic competitiveness in the 21st century," Biden said during the launch. The IPEF is understood to expand cooperation in areas of "high-standard approaches" like- technology, supply-chain resilience, digital trade, genomic surveillance, and more, US National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan had said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Australian PM Anthony Albanese and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida assembled for Quad Leaders' Summit in Tokyo.