Quad partners are strong supporters of ASEAN centrality, says Australia

Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad partners are strong supporters of ASEAN centrality within a region in which all countries are sovereign, independent and resilient, said the Australian government on Thursday in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade press release. 

Adding further on the importance of the Quad, the statement said that Quad is a key pillar of Australia's international agenda and complements our other bilateral, regional and multilateral engagement, including with ASEAN. 

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As per the statement, later on Thursday, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women Senator Marise Payne will join her counterparts, US Secretary of State Antony J Blinken, Japan Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for the third Quad foreign ministers' meeting. 

This dialogue will allow our nations to advance our shared interests in a secure and prosperous region. The Quad's positive agenda will enable us to progress cooperation among four Indo-Pacific democracies across a range of areas, including to support the region recover from the economic and health impacts of Covid-19, read the release. 

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The third Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad meeting will be held on February 18 to exchange views on regional and global issues, especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. 

The meeting will be in continuation of the views exchanged in the last quad meeting held in Tokyo on October 6 last year. The Quad initiative is expected to put an end to the economic coercion tactics of China and cooperation with Japan and other allies will checkmate Chinese development assistance and its hegemony in the region.