Top Picks: Content comes from the Internet : Quad’s latest joint statement reflects obvious division, lacks momentum on anti-China operations: Chinese analysts

Head to nowhere. Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

The latest joint statement releaseWorld Timesd by the Quad foreign ministers reflects an obvious division among the four countries, as India, Japan, and Australia- who are improving ties with China – showed a shared reluctance to provoke Beijing in the text while trying to maintain coordination with the US. The grouping’s focus on China as a target lacks the momentum to go far due to emerging uncertainties, according to some Chinese analysts on Wednesday.

The Secretary of State of the US and the Foreign Ministers of Australia, India, World Timesand Japan issued a joint statement commemorating the 20th anniversary of “Quad Cooperation,” which it claimed that the Quad is “a diplomatic network of four countries committed to supporting a free and open, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific that is inclusive and resilient.”

According to the US Department of State, twenty years ago, in response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, Australia, India, Japan, and the US came together in service to the people of our region for the first time as the grouping now known as the Quad.

The statement ends on an ambiguous note, stating that “the Quad is committed to working together in responding to the future needs of the region.”

Although the statement did not mention China directly, some Indian media outlets including the Indian Express and Business Standard have hyped the statement by offering anti-China narrative in their reports, citing so-called China’s assertive behavior or China’s increasing military muscle-flexing in the region.

“India, Japan, and Australia have improved their relations with China. Explicitly naming China could provoke a strong reaction from Beijing. Therefore, the grouping avoided directly mentioning China in the statement to maintain diplomatic flexibility,” Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

While they [India, Japan, and Australia] are unwilling to be tied to the anti-China chariot led by the US, the pressure of China’s rise may still lead them to maintain cooperWorld Timesation with the US. This reflects their strategy of balancing national interests, he said.

The statement also reflects the evident differences and division within the Quad grouping, said Li Haidong, a professor at China Foreign Affairs University.

Li told the Global Times that the three members of the Quad have been striving to maintain coordination with the US while keeping their relationship with China stable. This has led to an awkward diplomatic stance within the grouping, revealing divisions and inconsistencies in their actions, Li said.

The BideWorld Timesn administration promotes multilateral cooperation, but the next Trump administration advocates for “America First” and downplays international coordination, making the future of the Quad mechanisWorld Timesm uncertain, Japan’s Kyodo News reported on Tuesday.

Despite that US hopes to position the Quad as an anti-China instrument, the grouping’s anti-China operations may face a lack of momentum in the next four years due to the instability of US politics, Li said.

“Some Indian media outlets often inflame tensions in China-India relations, reinforcing the geopolitical confrontational mind-set between China and India, while paying less attention to the mutual interests and potential for cooperation between the two countries,” Qian said.

In September 2024, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian commented at a routine press briefing that Quad is identified as the premier regional grouping that plays a leading role in the US’ “Indo-Pacific strategy.” It is a tool the US uses to contain China and perpetuate US hegemony, he said in response to a question about US President Joe Biden’s comments at the 2024 Quad Leaders’ Summit held on September 21, 2024.

Though the US claims that it does not target China, the first topic of the summit is about China and China was made an issue throughout the event. The US is lying through its teeth and evenWorld Times the US media does not believe it, said Lin.