Australia on Wednesday has officially announced the dates for the third QUAD Leaders Summit scheduled to take place on May 24 at the Sydney Opera House.
The first two QUAD Leaders summit was hosted by the US and Japan, and Australia will be hosting the meeting for the first time which comes amidst the growing concerns over Chinese belligerence in the region.
On Wednesday Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tweeted “I’m pleased to announce that Australia will be hosting the Quad Leaders’ Summit for the first time on May 24 in Sydney.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the Leaders Summit along with other leaders – the US President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan and his Australian counterpart Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
In 2022 Albanese attended the 2022 Quad Leaders’ meeting in Tokyo, soon after his election as prime minister. The announcement of PM Modi going for the third in-person QUAD Leaders Summit was made earlier this year at a joint press conference which was hosted by PM Modi and his Australian counterpart.
Expected Agenda of the Leaders Summit
The Leaders will be attending the meeting straight after the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.
QUAD member states have already committed themselves to supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific, which is inclusive and resilient. The four leaders will talk about deepening cooperation on maritime domain awareness, global economy, critical and emerging technologies, cyber security, space cooperation, Indo-Pacific, global health, infrastructure and other issues of mutual interest. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war too is likely to be discussed as it has a major impact on food and energy security as well as the global economy.
Late Tuesday, an official statement issued by the White House announced that US President Joe Biden will reach Australia to attend the third in-person QUAD Leaders meet after attending the G7 Leaders’ in Japan, from May 19 to May 21.
Background
The QUAD was set up back in 2017 and the focus was on developing a new strategy to keep critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific region free and secure. The first Leaders summit had taken place in a virtual format during the COVID pandemic global lockdown.