The four countries had their first joint secretary level meeting at the initiative of Japan in Manila that turned out to be highly successful

NEW DELHI: The second edition of the India-US-Japan-Australia quadrilateral meet is expected to be held soon in the backdrop of the decision to do away with the limit on terms for Chinese President Xi Jinping that has given further momentum to China’s designs in the Indo-Pacific region. The four partners are expected to discuss the situation in Maldives, among other issues, where China is alleged to have meddled to keep President Abdulla Yameen in power with an eye on setting up a naval base in India’s backyard. 

The situation in the Korean Peninsula amid signs of a thaw between the United States and North Korea will also be part of the agenda of the gathering that is expected to take place within six months of the previous meet in Manila in November 2017, according to people aware of the matter. 

The US administration has indicated that the Maldives issue will be discussed at the quadrilateral meeting and that it is closely monitoring China’s actions in the Indo-Pacific region. “We (Quad) are looking forward to doing a follow up meeting. The current situation in the Maldives certainly may be something that could be discussed by the Quad,” a senior US administration official had said recently in Washington. 

The exact dates for the meet are being worked out.

The four countries had their first joint secretary level meeting at the initiative of Japan in Manila that turned out to be highly successful. Officials of the four countries at the same level are expected to meet soon, said the senior US official. “China uses its foreign policy to counter others and achieve some goals in the Indo-Pacific region. Quad is a kind of ‘united front’, a tactic. Officials from the US, India, Japan and Australia had met in Manila last November to protect rule of law, freedom of navigation, maritime security and connectivity,” said Prof Srikanth Kondapalli, an expert on China.

Ahmed Naseem, a former foreign minister of Maldives, recently said that China is meddling in the internal affairs of his country and has indulged in a massive land grabbing endeavour which if left unchecked would pose a major strategic threat to both India and the US, both of which have a major stake in the Indian Ocean.