The Quad foreign ministers convened in New Delhi to bolster cooperation across the Indo-Pacific region amid escalating geopolitical tensions and economic challenges stemming from the West Asia conflict. This significant meeting brought together India’s external affairs minister S. Jaishankar, Australian foreign minister Penny Wong, Japanese foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and US secretary of state Marco Rubio, marking the first Quad foreign ministers’ meeting in almost a year.
The primary focus of their discussion is to reinvigorate the Quad alliance and expand collaboration in areas such as maritime security, economic resilience, critical minerals, infrastructure development, and disaster response. Prior to the main meeting, Jaishankar and Motegi engaged in bilateral talks addressing economic security and the consequences of the West Asia crisis on energy supplies and trade. Both India and Japan underscored the critical need for stability in the Indo-Pacific and secure maritime routes.
Japanese foreign minister Motegi remarked on the significant structural shifts occurring in the world due to changing global power dynamics and increasing conflicts, emphasizing the shared responsibility of India and Japan in crafting the future international order. Meanwhile, Australia highlighted the Quad’s essential role in maintaining peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, noting the growing importance of this cooperation in a volatile global environment.
Among the key issues on the agenda is the long-awaited Quad Leaders’ Summit, which was originally scheduled in India last year but was postponed due to the lack of confirmation from then-US President Donald Trump. The last summit of the Quad Leaders took place in the United States in 2024, and the previous foreign ministers’ meeting was held in Washington in July 2025.
Jaishankar has recently reiterated the commitment of the Quad nations, describing them as “maritime democracies,” to uphold international law, ensure secure trade routes, and support a rules-based order within the Indo-Pacific region. The meeting in New Delhi aims to provide the necessary momentum for these initiatives amidst an increasingly unstable global landscape.