In an effort to breathe new life into their alliance known as the Quad, the foreign ministers of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States inked agreements pertaining to vital minerals and energy security and decided to work together to construct a port in Fiji.
The Quad's top diplomats—Australia's Penny Wong, India's S. Jaishankar, Japan's Toshimitsu Motegi, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio—met briefly for the third time since September 2024.
The company presented a port in Fiji as its first collaborative infrastructure project.We are announcing plans to collaborate with Fiji on port infrastructure challenges, specifically in response to the Pacific Islands' inadequate port capacity," Rubio stated.

Due to disagreements between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump over Washington's tariffs and other issues, the four-nation group had lost some impetus last year after failing to host a leaders' meeting.We are starting to demonstrate genuine successes," Rubio remarked. "We have a strong commitment to this collaboration. It is essential to and a pillar of the United States' worldwide strategy.
According to him, the group decided to start an initiative on vital minerals and Indo-Pacific Energy Security.
The absence of the leaders' summit raises questions
According to Rubio, the minerals framework would direct how to coordinate investment and use economic policy tools to improve essential minerals supply chains, including mining and processing, as well as key minerals recycling.After China stopped shipping certain minerals used in the semiconductor, aerospace, and defence industries due to a diplomatic conflict, the project might be important for Japan.
Trump's visit to India, which would likely be linked to a Quad summit, has been pushed for by New Delhi. Analysts have questioned if the Quad's significance has been diminished due to a lack of leader-level engagement.
Rubio stated over the weekend that diplomats would work toward a meeting later this year, but the foreign ministers did not remark on the prospect of a summit this year.Premesha Saha, a senior policy fellow at the Asia Society Australia in Melbourne, stated, "The lack of a leaders' summit has raised some doubts, but that does not necessarily indicate declining importance."The Quad can continue to be important even in the absence of frequent leadership-level signalling if it can continue to deliver at the ministerial and working levels.
Concerns over China's increasing influence are shared by the Quad nations, and Rubio has emphasised the significance of preserving a "free and open Indo-Pacific."
China says QUAD shouldn't target other parties.
The four nations expressed their continued "serious concern about the situation in the East China Sea and the South China Sea" and the "militarisation of disputed features" in the South China Sea in a joint statement.Stressing safety and the continuous flow of international trade across the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, they also denounced attacks on commercial maritime vessels in the Middle East and declared their opposition to the imposition of tolls.
China has constructed military installations on disputed features and claims nearly the whole South China Sea. Parts of the sea are also claimed by a number of Southeast Asian nations. A different territorial dispute exists between China and Japan in the East China Sea.
Beijing has denounced the Quad as a Cold War-era alliance designed to stifle its growth.
It stated on Tuesday that international collaboration should not target any third country and should instead promote regional peace, stability, and development.

Additionally, we oppose bloc conflict and the emergence of exclusive cliques. Mao Ning, the spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, stated at a regular press briefing that "no cooperation should undermine mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries."
Although Modi has shown a desire to strengthen relations with Beijing during his tensions with Trump, India also has territorial conflicts with China.
Michael Martina, Aftab Ahmed, Saurabh Sharma, Sakshi Dayal, Hritam Mukherjee, Tim Kelly, John Geddie, Liz Lee, and Xiuhao Chen reported from New Delhi; Thomas Derpinghaus, YP Rajesh, and Kate Mayberry edited.