Top Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) leaders reiterated their commitment towards free, open, secure, prosperous Indo-Pacific region in an opinion piece in The Washington Post on Saturday (local time).
The information about the opinion piece was shared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi through his Twitter handle.
"As the Quad works towards a free, open, secure, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific, @POTUS @JoeBiden, PM @ScottMorrisonMP, PM @sugawitter and I write about our shared vision," tweeted PM Modi.
On March 12, the first-ever virtual summit of the top leaders of Quad comprising of PM Modi, United States President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison took place.
The opinion piece was written by the top leaders of the Quad, wherein they talked about the history of the making the group and discussed their commitment towards interconnection and opportunity throughout the Indo-Pacific.
The four countries first worked collectively in 2004, in response to the devastation of an earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean.
It became a diplomatic dialogue in 2007 and was reborn in 2017, said the opinion piece of The Washington Post.
The four leaders recommitted to a shared vision for an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, resilient and inclusive.
"We are striving to ensure that the Indo-Pacific is accessible and dynamic, governed by international law and bedrock principles such as freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes and that all countries are able to make their own political choices, free from coercion. In recent years, that vision has increasingly been tested. Those trials have only strengthened our resolve to reckon with the most urgent of global challenges together," said the opinion piece.
Writing about the first-ever virtual meet of the top leaders, "We are striving to ensure that the Indo-Pacific is accessible and dynamic, governed by international law and bedrock principles such as freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes and that all countries are able to make their own political choices, free from coercion. In recent years, that vision has increasingly been tested. Those trials have only strengthened our resolve to reckon with the most urgent of global challenges together."
The leaders also wrote about climate change, "It is clear that climate change is both a strategic priority and an urgent global challenge, including for the Indo-Pacific region. That's why we will work together and with others to strengthen the Paris agreement and enhance the climate actions of all nations."
They also focussed upon the coronavirus pandemic, "The pandemic is among the greatest risks to health and economic stability in recent history, and we must work in partnership to stop it in its tracks. Now, we are launching an ambitious effort to help end Covid-19. Together, we pledge to expand and accelerate production in India of safe, accessible and effective vaccines. We will partner at each stage to ensure that vaccines are administered throughout the Indo-Pacific region into 2022."
"We will combine our scientific ingenuity, financing, formidable productive capacity and long history of global-health partnership to surge the supply of life-saving vaccines, in close collaboration with multilateral orgsations including the World Health Orgsation and Covax Facility," added the opinion piece.
Further, it said, "Our vaccine initiative will be guided by a Quad Vaccine Experts Working Group that brings together the sharpest scientific leaders from Australia, India, Japan and the United States to meet the region's pressing needs. And though the pandemic prevents us from meeting in person, we will do so before the end of 2021. The promises we make today must translate into a healthier and more prosperous Indo-Pacific tomorrow."
Regarding shared regional vision, it said, "We will renew and strengthen our partnerships in Southeast Asia, starting with the Association for Southeast Asian Nations, work with the Pacific Islands, and engage the Indian Ocean region to meet this moment. Quad is a flexible group of like-minded partners dedicated to advancing a common vision and to ensuring peace and prosperity. We welcome and will seek opportunities to work with all of those who share in those goals."
( With inputs from ANI )
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