President Joe Biden will host the first-ever in-person Quad Summit on September 24. The Summit will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia, and Japanese premier Yoshihide Suga, the White House announced on Monday, September 13, 2021.
Prime Minister Modi will be meeting his third American President since he came to power in 2014. Accompanying him will be India’s Minister of External Affairs, S. Jaishanker and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
The unstated purpose of the groupings such as the Quad and the AUKUS is to counter China’s rising influence in the Indo-Pacific. But India is the only country to share a land border with China and has also faced armed conflict with China. India has banned the Chinese app Tik-Tok which continues to operate in the United States.
Vice President Kamala Harris, whose mother grew up in India will meet Modi as will a number of American CEOs including Apple’s Tim Cook. The CEOs of Qualcomm (Cristiano R.Amon), Adobe (Shantanu Narayen), First Solar (Mark Widmar), General Atomics International (Vivek Lall), and Blackstone (Stephen Schwarzmann) will also have short 1-1 meetings with the Prime Minister. All have substantial interests in India.
The Quad leaders will discuss deepening ties and advancing practical cooperation on areas such as combating COVID-19, addressing the climate crisis, and promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific.White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, “The Biden-Harris Administration has made elevating the Quad a priority, as seen through the Quad Leaders-level engagement in March, which was virtual, and now this Summit, which will be in-person. Hosting the leaders of the Quad demonstrates the Biden-Harris Administration’s priority of engaging in the Indo-Pacific, including through new multilateral configurations to meet the challenges of the 21st century.”
The leaders “will also exchange views on contemporary global issues such as critical and emerging technologies, connectivity and infrastructure, cyber security, maritime security, humanitarian assistance/ disaster relief, climate change and education,” India’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
“Hosting the leaders of the Quad demonstrates the Biden-Harris Administration’s priority of engaging in the Indo-Pacific, including through new multilateral configurations, to meet the challenges of the 21st century,” the White House said on Tuesday.
