India a driving force of Quad, says US

Pierre said the Joe Biden administration will continue to build a strategic partnership in which the United States and India will work together to promote stability in South Asia…reports Asian Lite News

The United States has said that India is a driving force of the Quad and an engine for regional growth, days after the fourth meeting of the strategic security bloc was held in Australia’s Melbourne.

External affairs minister S Jaishankar led the Indian side during the Quad meeting held on February 11, while the US was represented by Secretary of State Tony Blinken. The Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprises India, the US, Japan and Australia.

“We recognise that India is a like-minded partner and leader in South Asia and the Indian Ocean, active in and connected to Southeast Asia, a driving force of the Quad, and an engine for regional growth and development,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the principal deputy press secretary of the White House, told reporters in Washington on Monday.

Pierre said the Joe Biden administration will continue to build a strategic partnership in which the United States and India will work together to promote stability in South Asia, collaborate in new areas of cyberspace, health. She added that both countries will also work together towards a free and open Indo-Pacific.

On February 11, the United States released its new Indo-Pacific strategy, where it recognised the increasing challenge posed by China’s aggression in the Indo-Pacific along with India’s centrality in the region.

The recent Quad summit discussed the India-China relations which have taken a sour turn ever since the border skirmishes in 2020.

Jaishankar has blamed Beijing for the current situation at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) due to the disregard of written agreements.

“Yes, we (Quad) had a discussion on India-China relations because it was part of how we briefed each other about what was happening in our neighbourhood. And it’s an issue in which a lot of countries legitimately take an interest, particularly if they are from the Indo-Pacific region,” Jaishankar said.

Referring to China, Jaishankar added that when a large country disregards written commitments, it is an issue of a legitimate concern for the entire international community.

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