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The Foreign Ministers of the Australia-India-Japan-United States Quad, who met in Melbourne on Friday for their fourth ministerial meeting, announced a number of initiatives that underlined the grouping’s widening scope, from speeding up the delivery of more than a billion Covid vaccines to be manufactured in India and holding a special meet on climate change this year, to stepping up efforts to ensure maritime security in the region. They also announced plans for a Quad summit including Prime Minister Modi, U.S. President Biden and Australian PM Morrison to be hosted by Japan’s PM Kishida in Tokyo in the first half of 2022.
The Quad also made a veiled reference to China’s actions in the South and East China seas, reaffirming a commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific “in which states strive to protect the interests of their people, free from coercion.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry, expectedly, issued a response calling the Quad “only a tool to contain China” and “a deliberate move to stoke confrontation and undermine international solidarity and cooperation”.
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Speaking in Melbourne, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said China’s decision to amass troops along the Line of Actual Control was a violation of its written commitments and said Beijing’s behaviour was an issue of concern for the international community. That comment drew a sharp reaction from Beijing on Monday, which said it hoped India would not make “irresponsible remarks” on the border situation and that both sides “should follow through on agreements”.
The Hindu’s Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar looked at the main takeaways from the meeting – the points of agreement as well as issues including the crisis in Ukraine where the four aren’t exactly on the same page. Haidar argues that what seems clear is that the Quad remains strong on its Indo-Pacific commitments, but the worldviews of the 4 Quad partners is far from the same. You can read or watch her analysis of the meeting here.
The Top Five
What we are reading this week - the best of The Hindu‘s Opinion and Analysis
- Former National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan, on the cyber challenge, argues that rather than wait for the ‘Big Bang cyber attack’, nations and institutions ought to be better prepared.
- Sriram Lakshman writes on the Biden administration’s long-awaited Indo-Pacific strategy that was released on Friday. The document focuses on building collective capacity to deal with challenges in the region — China’s assertiveness, the pandemic and climate change, among others.
- Meera Srinivasan analyses the current state of India-Sri Lanka relations and the recent visit of Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, after a year marked by strain and a trust deficit.
- Srinivasan Ramani assesses the multiple challenges faced by the African Union, from civil conflicts, Islamist insurgencies, a rising number of military takeovers and the COVID-19 outbreak, which were in focus at the 35th African Union Summit held on February 5.
- G. Sampath writes on the “freedom convoy” and truckers protests against the vaccine mandate that have paralysed Canada’s capital.
Neighbourhood Watch
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris. | Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Speaking to The Hindu, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, on his India visit, said India’s support has made a “world of difference” to Sri Lanka’s economic situation, making it clear that the flurry of agreements announced in recent weeks have allowed the neighbours to move on from the problems of the “immediate past”. He cautioned, however that the unresolved conflict over fishing rights is a “constant irritant” in bilateral relations, and the recent clashes between Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen that led to the death of two Sri Lankans, was a “flashpoint” in ties that he hopes to resolve through talks.
T. Ramakrishnan explains the fisheries conflict in the Palk Bay as it again acquires intensity.
A group of senior parliamentarians in Sri Lanka, including some aligned to the government, have called for an “orderly negotiated postponement” of outstanding foreign debt, and corrective policy measures including a “strong social welfare scheme”, to combat the island nation’s economic crisis.
India has signed an agreement with the United Nation’s World Food Programme (WFP) for the distribution of 50,000 MT of wheat that it has committed to sending Afghanistan as part of a humanitarian assistance, with diplomatic efforts under way to begin sending truck convoys through Pakistan by road, expected to begin after Punjab elections on February 20 are completed.
Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba’s government is facing a major challenge this month as the Biden administration has set a deadline for the ratification of the US Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC) development compact by February 28, which members of the ruling coalition are divided on. The rift over the MCC agreement and development grant of more than $500 million, which has divided Mr. Deuba’s National Congress party (NC) and his coalition partner Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s (Prachanda) Communist party (Maoist), is being watched closely by India as it could not only affect the stability of the government but also play a decisive role in local elections set for May 13 and general elections later this year.
The ISRO’s PSLV C-52 carrying three satellites successfully lifting off from the first launch-pad Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. | Photo Credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam
On Monday, thick orange fumes from the Indian Space Research Organisation’s PSLV C-52 briefly lit up the pre-dawn dark sky as ISRO’s first launch of 2022 went off without a glitch. The PSLV C-52 carrying the Earth Observation Satellite, EOS - 04, the INS-2TD, a technology demonstrator from ISRO and the INSPIREsat-1, a student satellite, lifted off at 5.59 a.m from the first launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, Sriharikota on Monday. The Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and the National Central University, Taiwan, were part of the development team of the INSPIREsat. This marks a rare instance of cooperation with Taiwan on space.
India’s Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday recommended a ban on 54 Chinese mobile applications “that pose a threat to the country’s security”. This follows bans on more than 200 Chinese apps since 2020.
As the Winter Olympics continue in Beijing, we looked at the rise and rise of freestyle skiing sensation Eileen Gu, and how a U.S.-born athlete became the face of China’s games.
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