The joe Biden, —1— president of the USA, his administration on Thursday reiterated Washington’s commitment to an annual meeting of the foreign ministers of the Quad countries — with India, Japan and Australia — and its central cause of ensuring a “free and open Indo-Pacific region”, while India highlighted “practical cooperation in different domains to give our agenda a concrete shape”.

US Secretary of State _____2_____ met his counterparts — India’s S Jaishankar, Australia’s Marise Payne and Japan’s Toshimitsu Motegi— virtually. This was____2_____ first Quad engagement and took place amid talk of a first summit-level meeting of the informal grouping that is said to be mulling steps towards formalising its engagements. At least one annual meeting of the foreign ministers, which was announced in 2020, is a step in that direction. The United States is said to be pushing for it and an announcement to this effect is awaited.

The four ministers discussed “cooperation on Covid-19 response and recovery and climate change and committed to working together to address these global challenges”, state department spokesperson Ned Price said in a readout of the meeting.

They also discussed “countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, and the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government” in Myanmar, which witnessed a military coup earlier this month.
The Biden administration signed on to the other elements of the Quad by reaffirming their mutual support for ASEAN centrality, which has been a key Indian position.