Quad Condemns Terrorism, expresses Concern of China’s Threat in East, South China Seas

By R Anil Kumar

• Quad Condemns Terrorism, Calls for Action Against UN-Listed Groups, Including LeT, JeM

• “We strongly reiterate our condemnation of terrorist attacks, including the 26/11 Mumbai and Pathankot attacks and call for bringing the perpetrators of these attacks to justice without delay,” said the statement from the grouping comprising India, the US, Japan and Australia

• All countries should take immediate, sustained and irreversible action to prevent territory under their control from being used for terrorist purposes: QUAD

• The Quad foreign ministers from Australia, India, Japan, and the United States expressed serious concerns over intimidating actions in the South China Sea and pledged to enhance maritime security in the region

Tokyo, July 31. The four-nation grouping Quad called for concerted action against all UN-listed terrorist groups, including LeT, JeM and their proxy outfits as it urged all countries to take immediate, sustained and irreversible action to prevent their territory from being used for terrorist purposes, in a veiled reference to Pakistan.

In a joint statement issued after the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting here, the Quad ministers “unequivocally” condemned terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms including cross-border terrorism.

“We strongly reiterate our condemnation of terrorist attacks, including the 26/11 Mumbai and Pathankot attacks and call for bringing the perpetrators of these attacks to justice without delay,” said the statement from the grouping comprising India, the US, Japan and Australia.

The ministers deplored the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, tunnels and information and communication technologies by terrorists and terrorist entities.

The Quad urged all countries to take immediate, sustained and irreversible action to prevent territory under their control from being used for terrorist purposes.

“We reiterate the call for concerted action against all UN-listed terrorist groups including Al-Qa’ida, ISIS/Daesh, Lashkar e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), and their proxy groups,” it said, without naming any country.

Pakistan has been repeatedly accused by its neighbours of “providing safe havens to terrorist groups including al-Qaida, JeM, LeT and their proxy groups”.

The Quad member states said they were committed to working together to promote accountability for the perpetrators of terrorist attacks and support implementation including through domestic designations of UN Security Council resolutions as they pertain to sanctions.

“We are committed to international cooperation and working together with our international and regional partners in a comprehensive and sustained manner to strengthen their capacity to prevent, detect and respond to threats posed by terrorism and violent extremism including threats posed by the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes,” the joint statement said.

The Quad foreign ministers welcomed the fruitful discussions held at the first Quad Working Group on Counter-Terrorism meeting and the fourth tabletop exercise in Honolulu in December 2023 and looked forward to Japan hosting the next meeting and tabletop exercise in November 2024.

Quad EAMS ‘Seriously Concerned’ about Beijing Threats in East, South China Seas

Foreign ministers of Quad – Australia, India, Japan and the United States said they were seriously concerned about intimidating and coercive manoeuvres in the South China Sea and affirmed to bolster maritime security in the region. India also said it was in talks to host the summit this year.

“India is the host for this year’s Quad and we are still discussing when to do the summit… Regarding the agenda, we came up with some new ideas today, but I can generally tell you that the idea…is disaster resilience, digital, critical emerging technologies, physical connectivity, how to build capacities across the Indo-Pacific,” external affairs minister S Jaishankar said after the meeting.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, he said: “It is only Quad nations’ collaboration that can ensure that Indo-Pacific remains free, open, stable and secure as the world grapples with the key question of upholding a rules-based order… It is therefore essential that our political understanding strengthens, our economic partnerships grow, technology collaborations expand and our people-to-people comfort intensifies. Our meeting should send a clear message that Quad is here to stay, here to do and here to grow.”

A joint statement after the meeting of foreign ministers – Jaishankar, Australia’s Penny Wong, Japan’s Yoko Kamikawa and Antony Blinken from the US – said: “We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas and reiterate our strong opposition to any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion. We continue to express our serious concern about the militarisation of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating manoeuvres in the South China Sea.”

“This time, the most attractive topic was the South China Sea, where the Quad supported the Philippines. All Quad states are supporting the Philippines,” Saturo Nagao, a Japan-based security expert, told ET. “The US has deployed intermediate missiles to the Philippines… Australia is also deploying forces to the Philippines. Japan’s fighter jets will be deployed in the Philippines on rotation basis. India provided the strongest weapon the Philippines possesses – Brahmos supersonic missile. For the Philippines, the missile is a game changer.”