Washington DC:

On his first full day in office on Tuesday, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held the first Quad ministerial meeting with  Australia, India and Japan and jointly warned against changing the status quo in Indo-Pacific via coercive actions, in a veiled but clear warning to China over its actions at sea. This was the first meeting of top diplomats of the China-focused grouping since Trump returned to the White House.

Rubio met with his counterparts Australia’s Penny Wong, India’s Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Japan’s Takeshi Iwaya in Washington. In a joint statement, the four nations restated their “shared commitment to strengthening a Free and Open Indo-Pacific where the rule of law, democratic values, sovereignty, and territorial integrity are upheld and defended.”

“We also strongly oppose any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion,” the statement said an apparent reference to the threat that China will act on its claim to sovereignty over democratically governed Taiwan. 

The ministers also confirmed they would work to hold a Quad summit previously scheduled for this year in India, which would mean an early trip by Trump to the growing US partner often viewed in Washington as a bulwark against China. 

“Significant that the Quad (foreign ministers’ meeting) took place within hours of the inauguration of the Trump Administration,” Jaishankar said on X after the meeting.

“This underlines the priority it has in the foreign policy of its member states,” he added. 

Attended a productive Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting today in Washington DC. Thank @secrubio for hosting us and FMs @SenatorWong & Takeshi Iwaya for their participation.

Significant that the Quad FMM took place within hours of the inauguration of the Trump Administration. This… pic.twitter.com/uGa4rjg1Bw

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) January 21, 2025

China has repeatedly lashed out at the Quad — a grouping envisioned by late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and expanded into a leaders’ summit by former President Joe Biden– saying it is a US plot to encircle the rising Asian power. 

The Quad grouping met many times during the administration of former President Joe Biden, with a focus on Beijing’s military and economic activities in the Indo-Pacific, particularly in the South China Sea where US allies have pushed back against Beijing’s territorial claims.

Trump’s China Push Back

Meanwhile, Rubio also met separately with the three foreign ministers on Tuesday. Trump officials were working on scheduling another gathering of the foreign ministers at the White House as well, news agency Reuters reported quoting a person involved in planning meetings.

China has had rising friction with the Philippines, a US ally, over its assertive claims in territorial disputes. The four countries– US, India, Japan and Australia– share concerns about China’s growing power in the Indo-Pacific region and analysts said the meeting was designed to signal that countering Beijing is a top priority for Trump–who has vowed to push back against a rising China. 

Rubio also, in his confirmation hearing, vowed to deter China against an invasion of Taiwan, the self-governing democracy it claims as its own. The Republican senator earlier said he would stress the importance of working with allies “on the things that are important to America and Americans” during the meeting.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong (2-R) speaks as India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (L), Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (2-L), and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (R) listen during a joint press conference after their meeting at Iikura Guest House on July 29, 2024 in Tokyo, Japan.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

The Quadrilateral partnership consisting of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States intends to expand the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) into the Indian Ocean Region, the Foreign Ministers of the four member countries announced on Monday in Tokyo. Addressing the meeting, External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar said the four members of the Quad grouping are democracies that are working as a “powerful stabilizing factor.” The Ministers also called for immediate cessation of violence in Ukraine, Gaza, and Myanmar.

“We continue to work with the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency to enhance regional maritime domain awareness in the Pacific through satellite data, training and capacity building. In line with such efforts, we intend to geographically expand the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) to the Indian Ocean region,” a joint statement issued after the meeting declared. The IPMDA is aimed at ensuring safety and security of the critical sea lanes. In an interview with The Hindu in October 2023, the previous Indian Navy chief Admiral Hari Kumar had described the IPMDA as a “comprehensive system for monitoring and securing maritime activities in the Indo-Pacific.”

Indicating growing concern about China’s maritime activities in the South China Sea, the meeting emphasised “the importance of maintaining and upholding freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of sea, and unimpeded commerce consistent with international law”.

Monday’s meeting in Tokyo was attended by Mr. Jaishankar, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and the Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko, who was the host of the event.

In his remarks Mr. Jaishankar described as an action-oriented platform that is aimed at “practical outcomes” saying, “…our HADR (Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief) conversations are reflected in understandings and SOPs between our Navies.”

He also referred to the IPMDA initiative as a system that will link the information fusion centres that will enable real time coordination to deal with maritime challenges. Indicating a global agenda of the Quad club, the Foreign Ministers said that they have “great interest” in “ensuring peace and stability in the Middle East”.  The joint statement condemned the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israeli targets by Hamas but also said, “large-scale loss of civilian lives and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is unacceptable.”

The Foreign Ministers said there is an “urgent need” to “significantly increase deliveries of life-saving humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza”, and highlighted “the crucial need to prevent regional escalation.”

”We urge all parties to comply with international law, including international humanitarian law, as applicable. We welcome UNSC Resolution S/RES/2735 (2024), and strongly urge all parties concerned to work immediately and steadily toward the release of all hostages and an immediate ceasefire,” declared the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Japan, India, and the United States.

The dignitaries also expressed their “deepest concern” for the ongoing war in Ukraine where the war has been raging since February 2022 when Russian forces invaded the country. The joint statement underscored the importance of “sovereignty and territorial integrity” for Ukraine and sought “a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in line with international law, consistent with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter”.

The four-power consensus on the territorial integrity of Ukraine indicates the larger discussion over the matter as PM Modi is expected to visit Ukraine next month. Answering a question in a press conference after the meeting, Mr. Jaishankar hinted at possibilities of “more contacts” between India and Ukraine but did not confirm Mr Modi’s Ukraine visit and said, “Things [should] move from the battlefield into the conference table, that is our endeavour…In the last two and half years, the conflict has cost lives, and has caused economic damage and created food shortages.” 

The meeting also took up the violence in Myanmar which has pitted dozens of Ethnic Armed Organisations against the forces of the military junta in Nay Pyi Taw and said the situation is impacting the neighbours of Myanmar who are facing problems like cyber crime, human trafficking and smuggling of narcotic items.

“We remain deeply concerned by the worsening political, security and humanitarian situation in Myanmar, including in Rakhine. Ongoing conflict and instability have serious implications for regional peace and security. We again call for the immediate cessation of violence; the release of all those unjustly detained; safe and unhindered humanitarian assistance,” the joint statement declared after the meeting of the Quad Foreign Ministers.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, meets with Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong at Parliament House in Canberra, on March 20, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

China and Australia claimed to have stabilised long-strained relations after talks in Canberra on Wednesday, despite evident tensions over a high-profile prisoner, trade and a new crackdown in Hong Kong.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Australia for the first time since 2017, a trip designed to draw a line under disputes related to everything from the origins of Covid-19 to military deployments.

The meeting was framed by warm words, with Wang saying the two sides had “broken the ice”, and that “mutual trust” and “good momentum” were slowly building.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong praised renewed “stability” in relations and said it was crucial to recognise “how much progress we have made in a short period of time”.

There was even a tacit commitment to extending the Australian sojourn of two giant pandas loaned by China in 2009 — a favourite tool of Beijing diplomacy.

But years of tensions and a fundamental disagreement about the shape of the Asia-Pacific region could not be papered over.

“We discussed the sentencing of Dr Yang Hengjun. I told the foreign minister Australians were shocked at the sentence imposed,” Wong told reporters after the meeting.

Jailed Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun — also known as Yang Jun — was in February handed a suspended death sentence after a Beijing court found him guilty of espionage.

He vehemently denies the charges.

Wong also raised concerns about human rights in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong, where pro-Beijing lawmakers on Tuesday passed national security reforms that will further criminalise dissent.

An Australian foreign ministry official said Wong had warned the reforms would “further erode rights and freedoms”, breach international commitments and have “far-reaching impacts, including on individuals in Australia”.

The remarks are unlikely to have gone down well with Wong’s Chinese guest.

Beijing has described similar criticism from Britain, the United States and the European Union as “slandering and smearing”.

As the foreign ministers met, protesters gathered on the lawns of Australia’s parliament, drawing attention to alleged human rights abuses within China.

A small group of demonstrators later clashed with police outside the Chinese embassy, brandishing Tibetan flags and shouting “free Tibet” as they rushed towards the building’s front gates.

Trade restrictions

Australia’s relationship with China began unravelling in 2018, when Canberra excluded telecommunications giant Huawei from its 5G network on security grounds and later passed laws on foreign interference.

Then in 2020, Australia called for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19 — an action China saw as politically motivated.

In response, Beijing slapped trade restrictions on a slew of Australian exports, including barley, beef and wine, while halting its coal imports.

Most of those barriers have been gradually wound back as relations have been repaired.

Wang said a final decision on ending wine tariffs would be made at the end of the month, signalling restrictions could soon be lifted.

Before the trade restrictions were imposed, China was the largest destination for Australian bottled wine — accounting for 33% of export revenue in 2020, according to Australian government data.

Wong said the talks had also touched on the global nickel market, which has been upended by a surge in exports from Indonesia — enabled by massive Chinese investments and a revolution in refining techniques.

Prices have fallen about 40% in the past year alone, prompting many once-dominant Australian firms to rethink projects or write down the value of their assets.

Wang later told an Australia-China business council that common interests between the two countries far outweigh their differences.

“China is Australia’s largest trading partner and the biggest customer for our products like iron ore”, said Rio Tinto mining executive and meeting participant Simon Trott, welcoming a “stabilisation” of relations.

Sydney:

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong, the country’s first openly gay female parliamentarian, has married her partner Sophie Allouache, Wong said on Sunday.

“We are delighted that so many of our family and friends could share this special day with us,” Wong said on social media platform Instagram, alongside a photo of her and Allouache in wedding attire and holding a bouquet of flowers.

Wong and Allouache have been together for nearly two decades and tied the knot on Saturday at a winery in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Wong represents the state of South Australia in the senate.

A Labor senator since 2002, Wong is the first Asian-born person to hold an Australian cabinet position.

Same-sex marriage became legal in Australia in 2017, a watershed for a country where homosexuality was not decriminalised in all states until 1997.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Australia will send a delegation of industry, government, academic, media and arts representatives to Beijing for a dialogue with their Chinese counterparts next week to stabilise its relationship with China, Canberra’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

Trade, investment, people-to-people links as well as regional and international security are among the issues up for discussion in next Thursday’s talks, Foreign Minster Penny Wong’s office said.

The high-level dialogue had been held annually from 2014 until it was stopped in 2020.

In a statement, Ms. Wong added that the talks represent “another step towards increasing bilateral engagement and stabilising our relationship with China”.

Former Trade Minister Craig Emerson will head the Australian delegation, which also includes their former foreign affairs minister Julie Bishop.

“Since it was established, the dialogue has been an opportunity to deepen mutual understanding with Chinese participants and to find common ground,” Mr. Emerson said in a statement.

Li Zhaoxing, China’s former Foreign Affairs Minister, will lead Beijing’s delegation.

The dialogue’s resumption is the latest example of ties thawing between Beijing and Canberra after years of tension.

China had been angered by Australia’s legislation against overseas influence operations, its barring Huawei from 5G contracts and its call for an independent investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

But relations appear to have warmed since the centre-left government in Canberra adopted a less confrontational approach to China following its election last year.