Hiroshima. Leaders of the Quad Grouping – the United States, India, Australia and Japan – railed against Beijing’s attitude during a summit in Hiroshima on Saturday. US President Joe Biden and his three allies in the grouping (Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Anthony Albanese, Fumio Kishida) clearly called for ‘peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific’ in a joint statement without naming China. Superpowers attacked.
“We strongly oppose such destabilization in the region or unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force,” the statement said, using diplomatic language. It is clear from the joint statement of the Quad countries that they are referring to China’s economic strategy to take advantage of poor countries and its military expansion in the Pacific region.
“We express our deep concern over the militarization of disputed areas, the dangerous use of Coast Guard and Marine Militia vessels and attempts to disrupt offshore resource exploitation activities of other countries,” the statement said. The statement clearly mentions the construction of Chinese bases on eastern offshore reefs and harassment of non-Chinese vessels in disputed waters.
“We are strongly opposed to any unilateral move to change the status quo and escalate tensions in the region,” the statement from the Quad countries said. They reaffirmed their commitment to uphold international law, peace and security, which are the foundations of development and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. Notably, China claims almost the entire South China Sea, while Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam claim their respective parts.
At the same time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the Quad Summit in Hiroshima that the Indo-Pacific region is the ‘engine’ of global business, innovation and development, and its success and security are critical to the entire world. It was attended by US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Prime Minister Modi said, ‘Quad has emerged as an important platform to ensure peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.’ He said that the success and security of the Indo-Pacific region is important to the entire world and ‘we are moving forward on a constructive agenda and democratic principles’.
“With united efforts, we are giving reality to our vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region,” the Prime Minister said. He said there is no doubt that the Indo-Pacific region is the ‘engine’ of global business, innovation and development. PM Modi said that Quad will work towards human welfare, peace and prosperity.
It should be noted that the Quad Summit is being organized in Hiroshima on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit. The first Quad Summit was scheduled to take place in Australia on May 24. A proposed meeting of leaders of the Quad countries in Sydney has been canceled after US President Joe Biden postponed a trip to Australia to focus on the country’s dire economic crisis.
(Also from Input Agency)
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Tags: Australia, China, Japanese, Joe Biden, Narendra Modi, square
First Published: May 21, 2023, 06:56 PM
