The leaders of Australia, India, Japan and the United States are meeting in US President Joe Biden’s hometown as the countries push to strengthen their Quad alliance amid growing competition with China.
Biden welcomed his counterparts to Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday for the group’s annual summit – the US president’s last before the end of his term.
“While challenges will come, the world will change … the Quad is here to stay,” Biden said.
In a joint readout after their talks, the leaders announced plans to deepen maritime cooperation in the Asia Pacific, including the launch of joint coastguard operations next year “to improve interoperability and advance maritime safety”.
The Quad, formally known as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, was initially launched in 2007 but it quickly dissolved amid protests from China.
The alliance was revived in 2017, and when Biden took office in 2021, he pushed to elevate it as the US sought to curb China’s influence in the Asia Pacific.
The group held its first leaders’ summit virtually in 2021, and a year later, Biden hosted the Australian, Indian and Japanese heads of state at the White House.
Last year, the Quad met in Hiroshima, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s hometown.
On Saturday, the leaders did not mention China in their opening remarks. But they presented themselves as the leaders of democracies and defenders of international norms in the Asia Pacific.
“All of us support a rules-based international order, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and peaceful resolution of all disputes,” said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“A free, open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific is our shared priority and shared commitment we have together.”
India has been accused of targeting dissidents internationally, including in the US and Canada, in violation of the principles of sovereignty.
The Biden administration, meanwhile, has faced mounting criticism over its unconditional support for Israel despite the US ally’s well-documented abuses across the Middle East.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also stressed the importance of national sovereignty in his remarks in Delaware.
“The promise in the region does depend on continued peace and stability and the wise management of strategic competition and disputes,” Albanese said.
“Partnerships like the Quad are crucial, providing us with an avenue to discuss shared responsibilities and goals.”
While the Biden administration has largely focused on the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza in its foreign policy file, senior US leaders also have said that the country’s top foreign policy priority is the deepening rivalry with China.
Ties between Beijing and Washington have soured over numerous points of tension in recent years, including trade issues, the status of Taiwan, claims to the South China Sea and allegations of spying and cyberattacks.
At the summit, Biden said his administration sees Beijing’s actions as a “change in tactic, not a change in strategy”.
“China continues to behave aggressively, testing us all across the region, and it’s true in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, South China, South Asia and the Taiwan Straits,” he said.
The US also has warned China against providing military support to Russia for its war in Ukraine.
Earlier this week, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell called the competition with China “the most significant challenge” in US history – comments that Beijing criticised.
“China urges the US to discard its Cold War and zero-sum mentality, stop spreading the ‘China threat’ narrative, stop misinterpreting China’s strategic intentions,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters on Friday.
