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| Leaders of the Quad countries meet virtually in March 2021. Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images |
International Military - Ministers of Foreign Affairs from the US, Japan, Australia to India recently held a meeting in Melbourne, Australia. The fourth meeting of the Foreign Ministers was held on February 11, 2021, related to the reaffirmation of the QUAD commitment. During the meeting, discussions about QUAD's commitment to supporting and advancing countries in the Indo-Pacific region were discussed.
"At the meeting, we reaffirmed the Quad's commitment to support the efforts of Indo-Pacific countries to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific," quoted from foreignminister.gov.au.
During the meeting, QUAD will advance their positive and ambitious agenda. “Our meeting advances the Quad's positive and ambitious agenda. We are focused on working with our Indo-Pacific partners to address the most important challenges in the region. Working together as a Quad, we are more effective in providing practical support to the region.” source light.
QUAD turned out to be a staunch supporter of ASEAN unity and centrality. “As staunch advocates of ASEAN unity and centrality, and an ASEAN-led architecture, we continue to support ASEAN partners to advance the practical implementation of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific.” he wrote.
The Outlook principles are fundamental to the stability and prosperity of the region and will be key to guiding the region's economic and political future. QUAD recognizes the importance of sub-regional mechanisms and institutions, including in the Mekong sub-region.
QUAD will also continue to support Cambodia in its important role as Chair of ASEAN 2022. QUAD welcomes progress on practical cooperation to address regional challenges, including assistance
humanitarian and disaster response (HADR), maritime security, counter-terrorism, counter-disinformation, and cybersecurity.
QUAD also recognizes that international law, peace and security in the maritime domain underpin the development and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific.
“We reaffirm the importance of compliance with international law, in particular as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),
to meet challenges to the maritime rules-based order, including in the South and East China Seas.” source light.
“We are determined to deepen engagement with regional partners, including through capacity building and technical assistance, to strengthen maritime domain awareness; protect their ability to develop offshore resources, in accordance with UNCLOS, ensure freedom of navigation and overflight; combating challenges, such as illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing; and promote the safety and security of maritime communication lines.” he added.
But who would have thought, quoted from lowyinstitute.org, it is known that QUAD member countries have different security interests. Even though it is known that the four QUAD member countries are in conflict with China. The ties that hold the quadrilateral ties together between the United States, Japan, Australia and India are very thin when it comes to China.
“The four members are geographically dispersed, their security interests are very different, and each has important economic ties with Beijing to protect.
India would not come to the aid of Japan in the event of a security dispute with China, nor would Japan be of much help to India.
And Australians, be prepared for a surprise: if we were to engage in a gunfight with China, Japan and India wouldn't be there for us either." he explained. This shows that the relationship between QUAD member countries is very thin even though they are both in conflict with China.