ASEAN Summit: Eye on China as India joins quadrilateral with US, Australia & Japan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Donald Trump, Japanese Prime Shinzo Abe and other world leaders at an ASEAN Summit dinner in Manila on Sunday. (PTI Photo)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Donald Trump, Japanese Prime Shinzo Abe and other world leaders at an ASEAN Summit dinner in Manila on Sunday. (PTI Photo)

With an eye on China’s activities in the region, India on Sunday said that the first meeting of its officials in Manila with those from the US, Australia and Japan — described as the “quadrilateral” — agreed that a “free, open, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific region serves the long-term interests of all countries in the region and of the world at large”.

The meeting, held a day before the ASEAN summit begins in the Philippines capital, also discussed the “common challenges of terrorism and proliferation linkages impacting the region”, according to the Ministry of External Affairs. Sources said India’s statement sought to connect the clandestine links between North Korea and Pakistan in the development of their nuclear programmes.

Click here to read more

Credit: indianexpress.com