The first in-person meeting of the Quad Alliance is going to be held in Washington today
Like most meetings in the last year and a half, the first meeting of the Quad Alliance, which includes the United States, Australia, India and Japan, was virtual.
The heads of state made contact in March and agreed to co-operate in a plan to send one billion cod vaccines to Asian countries by the end of 2022.
But now the first in-person meeting of the quad is going to be held in Washington DC on Friday. But it comes at a time when a new international security agreement has sparked controversy earlier this week.
The controversial Axis agreement includes the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Under the agreement, Australia will have access to US nuclear-powered submarine technology for the first time.
So will the Aux deal make a difference to the quad? The leaders of these countries have refrained from directly mentioning China during the meeting. But it is believed that the main purpose of these cooperation efforts is to reduce China's influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will definitely have China in mind when he meets other Quad leaders. India is the only country in the group that shares a border with China. Clashes have broken out on the border in several places. Last year, soldiers from both countries were killed in a battle.
India has repeatedly attended international meetings in recent years and its participation is considered important here. India also attends some meetings where China is a member. Experts say the existence of both Aux and Quad will benefit India.
The quad meeting will enable New Delhi to express its concerns with the other three member states and all these countries will be able to formulate a joint strategy on it.
Pratash Rao, director of South Asia at Control Risks, says the summit could help members formulate strategies to counter China's growing influence in the region.
Rao says the meeting could lay the groundwork for long-term cooperation, which will focus on complex technology, military cooperation and financial resources to build infrastructure in the region.
He said the two forums, Aux and Quad, would support each other in the region and member countries would help each other in regional security in the Indo-Pacific region.
The quad is expected to announce cooperation on issues such as climate change, cybersecurity, infrastructure development and information sharing on new technologies such as FiveG infrastructure.
