THE QUADRILATERAL UNDER THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION: A HOLISTIC RECONSTRUCTION

Posted on : June 14, 2021
Author : Akanksha Tiwari

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The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, also known as the QUAD, finally took off as a response to the growing Chinese regional belligerence in the Indo Pacific region. Initially proposed by the Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Shinzo Abe, in 2007, the QUAD is a diplomatic and military alliance between India, Japan, Australia and the United States of America. But the lack of clear objectives and directives put the consortium in a vulnerable position. Australia abruptly withdrew its partnership to avoid any uneasiness with China. In fact, in 2008, the Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith at a meeting organized with the Chinese foreign minister, Yang Jiechi, unilaterally declared Australia’s exit from the QUAD. India too under the Prime Ministership of Dr Manmohan Singh, departed from the QUAD in 2008. Thus, until now, the QUAD has been an unstable alliance with its leaders being constantly hesitant about their participation. Its foundation in 2007 was unaccompanied by a strong commitment by the countries that formed the consortium. 

 

However, with the growing Chinese aggression and tensions in the South China Sea that raised alarming concerns and threats in the region, this security cooperation garnered much attention and support. This eventually led to the resurrection of the QUAD after the 31st ASEAN Summit and East Asia Summit in Manila, 2017. Since then, the union has met five times in 2017-2019 and has issued independent statements saying that they share a similar vision to promote a “free and open Indo-Pacific but also touching on counterterrorism, humanitarian assistance, and disaster relief, maritime security cooperation, development finance, and cybersecurity” in relation with the Chinese aggression in the region.”

The Quadrilateral framework thrived under the Trump administration. President Trump was very passionate about the Quad and worked extensively towards increasing connectivity and cooperation, one such instance being the renaming of its oldest and largest military command, that is, the Pacific Command to the ‘Indo-Pacific Command’, mainly to indicate the importance India holds to the US military amid increased tensions with China over the militarization of the South China Sea. The Biden administration is also effectively continuing the QUAD cooperation. Significantly, instead of solely focusing on the defence alliance, it is also concentrating on the economic partnership, thereby pursuing the agenda of QUAD intensification. From this, we can interpret that President Biden intends to take the union in a multifaceted direction rather than just a defensive direction. A new era of the QUAD alliance can be expected under the Biden Administration. The transfer of power has only increased the commitment and enthusiasm to functioning together as a union. 

 

The first most significant indicator of the multi-faceted cooperation is seen from their aligned response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The first-ever leadership Summit of the Quadrilateral framework on March 12, 2021, was addressed by the Indian Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi, President Joe Biden of the United States, Japanese Premier Yoshihide Suga, and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Besides highlighting the defence and military agenda this meeting discussed a holistic approach towards dealing with vaccines, climate change, and other issues surrounding the contemporary world. The summit resolved to deal with the global pandemic with the collective support of the member countries on vaccines. To quote a joint statement issued at the summit, titled ‘The Spirit of the Quad’: “We will join forces to expand safe, affordable, and effective vaccine production and equitable access to speed economic recovery and benefit global health” and work on establishing an “open” and “free” Indo-Pacific. 

 

Moreover, President Biden emphasized that the Indo-Pacific region should be supervised in accordance with international law to ensure upholding of universal values and freedom from coercion. It should require no forensic analysis to conclude that President Biden was clearly implying that China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific had to be curbed, given China’s refusal to be bound by the judgment of the International Court of Justice on the Nine Dash Line. 

 

However, the prevailing domestic obstacles confronting the American government, worsened by the COVID outburst and the global resource commitments of the US are a significant hindrance to its response to Chinese threats, thereby suggesting that the US cannot counter China alone. This explains why President Biden intends to remain committed to the QUAD and focus on the goal of the US strategic community to engage in offshore balancing. Thus, the US is keen on not only burden-sharing but also burden-shifting in the Indo-Pacific through which regional power can be balanced and issues posed by an expansionist China can be reduced.  

 

The motivations for these states to come together at this time are two-fold, firstly, the economic implications posed by the global pandemic, and secondly, the Chinese aggression and its hegemonic activities. In such circumstances, no one country can take up the initiative to stand against the dragon on a bilateral basis. The United States is committed to the QUAD but it has to prioritize its national affairs. Considering the damage caused during the Trump administration, the focus of Biden’s presidency is centred around the rebuilding of the American nation by restructuring the domestic and foreign commitments and policies. Australia, despite being economically dependent on China, sees QUAD as a counterbalance alternative since it can succumb to the Chinese bully and influence. India and Japan, both being heavily impacted by the pandemic, are therefore incapable of incurring a financial burden upon themselves. The QUAD being the intersection of four significant countries and two seas requires multilateral cooperation to bolster itself. The QUAD should only acknowledge its power and influence once the economies of all four countries have collectively retrieved their strength.

 

Today, the QUAD can only sustain itself if the countries sharing the common agenda continue to co-operate and march ahead with a stronger bond. The expansion of the alliance by inviting the QUAD-plus countries such as Vietnam, New Zealand, and South Korea has also proved to be meaningful by giving QUAD a whole new dimension. 

 

With the existing global order and advancements, the future of QUAD seems promising. The alliance of the world’s largest militarary, economic, cultural, and structural powers has come together to formulate an association that has the potential to counter-balance and regulate the increasing regional hegemony of Beijing.   

 

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Akanksha Tiwari

Intern, Asia in Global Affairs