US Presidents Joe Biden, India’s Narenda Modi, Australia’s Scott Morrison and Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga meet at the White House | Indo-Pacific summit, excluding China

USA President , Joe BidenOn Friday, he noted the “excellent progress” of achieving “freedom and openness” between the Indo-Pacific, Amid growing concern about China’s military and political prosperity in the region.

This is how Biden expressed himself at the start of his first face-to-face summit at the White House along with other leaders of the so-called Quartet: Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison; The Prime Minister of Japan, Yoshihide Suga, and the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi.

“Free and open”

“When we met almost six months ago, we made commitments to advance our common and positive agenda Free and Open Indo-Pacific. Today I am proud to say that we are making excellent progress,” the US president said today.

This is the highest meeting held since then Creation of “Quad” in 2007At a time when the region is attracting the attention of the major world powers.

From the White House, Morrison, Modi and Suga welcomed this meeting, which, in their view, aims to promote “a free and open Indo-Pacific.”It is a formula used to criticize China and its ambitions in the region without naming it.

Morrison explained that the group is based on the need to demonstrate that “democracies can face major global challenges,” and emphasized that “No part of the world is more dynamic than the Indo-Pacific.”

For his part, Suga stressed that the group is a “very important initiative” that shows “strong solidarity” among the four countries. In turn, Modi insisted that Shared democratic values. of the four partners.

democracies

Meanwhile, host Biden said: “We are four First-class democraciesWith a long history of cooperation, we know how to move things forward.”

Quadrilateral is quoted if it produces A week after the introduction of the United States New Indo-Pacific Defense Alliance with Australia and the United KingdomAnd It shows how it has placed a strategic focus on the Indo-Pacific, in its quest to reshape the balance of power in a region dominated by China.

Announcing this new alliance in which he participated Australia cancels multi-million dollar contract with France The fact that this country supplied submarines, in favor of a new nuclear submarine system for the United States and the United Kingdom, caused a crisis between Washington and European partners.

tsunami

The so-called “Quadruple” was identified after the 2004 tsunami. It was formalized in 2007, but for a long time remained inactive. After a virtual summit in March, Biden met him again in person and on a high level.

When you reactivate a file ‘Quad’, Biden somehow looking “Shift to Asia” US foreign policy, a goal the former president had already achieved Barack Obama (2009-2017).

AUKUS

But after the announcement of AUKUSThe deal with the UK and Australia – and its nuclear-powered submarine contract that angered France – is known, Washington wants to present the “Quartet” in light of a consensus.

Senior White House officials told reporters that this was an “informal” and “intimate” summit aimed at “developing better channels of communication.” According to senior officials, The Quartet will focus mainly on economic, environmental and epidemiological projects.

ASEAN

They insisted that there is no “military” goal, stressing that the “Quartet” will be “complementary” to other regional initiatives, in response to a question about their details with Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Some members of this organization who make up Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Singapore, Thailand, and the PhilippinesThey are afraid of it The US attack in the region leads to an escalation with China.