1 / 9The Quad Leaders' Summit in Sydney scheduled for May 24 has been called off by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. This decision comes after US President Joe Biden postponed his visit to Australia. Instead, the four leaders of the Quad, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, will gather on the sidelines of the G7 meeting taking place this weekend in Japan. Despite the cancellation of the Quad leaders' meeting in Sydney, Prime Minister Modi will still travel to Australia next week, and Prime Minister Albanese eagerly anticipates his arrival. Let's delve into what the Quad is and how it operates.
2 / 9What is Quad? | The Quad, officially the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QSD), is not a formal alliance. It is an informal strategic forum comprising four maritime democracies: India, Japan, Australia and the United States. Its primary objectives are maritime security, addressing climate change, combating Covid-19 pandemic, among others. The Quad is also seen as an attempt to counter the growing might of China. (Image: Reuters)
3 / 9How the Quad works? | The Quad is a loose grouping rather than a formal alliance. It does not have a decision-making body or a secretariat, or a formal structure like NATO or the United Nations. The alliance is maintained through summits, meetings, information exchanges and military drills. It doesn't have a rigid framework and nations are free to unlink themselves from specific Quad initiatives. (Shutterstock)
4 / 9Quad 1.0 creation | Quad's origins can be traced back to the Indian Ocean tsunami when India, along with Japan, the US and Australia, conducted relief and rescue operations in the region. The group was disbanded after the 2004-05 operation. (Image: Reuters)
5 / 9In 2006, Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe proposed a group of "Like-minded countries in the Asia-Pacific region on themes of mutual interest". In May 2007, the first informal meeting between the four countries took place and in September, the Malabar military exercise was held at an unprecedented scale involving India, Japan, Australia, US, and Singapore. (Image: AP)
6 / 9The fall of Quad | In September 2007, Shinzo Abe resigned as Japanese Prime Minister and in November Quad critic Kevin Rudd became Prime Minister of Australia. Australia gradually backed out of the arrangement. In 2008, the alliance gradually fell apart. (Image: Reuters)
7 / 9Quad 2.0 revival | In 2017, Japan officially proposed a revival of the Quad and the first working-level meeting under the Quad took place in Manila. In 2020, Australia joined the trilateral India-US-Japan Malabar naval exercise after more than a decade. (Image: Reuters)
8 / 9In March 2021, the Quad leader met virtually and in September, the first in-person meeting of Quad leaders was held. The second in-person summit of Quad leaders took place in May 2022. (Image: Reuters)
9 / 9In May 2023, the third in-person summit of Quad leaders was cancelled after US President Joe Biden pulled out due to US debt crisis. The leaders of the Quad nations are expected to have a sideline meeting at the G7 summit in Hiroshima between May 19 and May 21.
