‘Quad has come of age’, says Modi at summit heralding broader agenda

By Arul Louis New York, March 12 : “The Quad has come of age,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared on Friday at the start of the summit of the leaders of the four nations to take the group to a next level of enhanced cooperation.
“We will work together closer than ever before for advancing our shared values and promoting our secure, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” he said. “Today’s summit shows that Quad has come of age. It will now remain an important pillar of stability in the region.” He said that the Quad working together as a “force for the global good” is an extension of the Indian creed of ‘Vasudaiva Kutumbakam’ or that the world is one family.
“We are united by our democratic values and our commitment to a free and open and inclusive Indo-Pacific,” he said in a reference to the regional threat from China.
Modi is participating in the summit along with Prime Ministers Scott Morrison of Australia and Yoshihide Suga of Japan, and US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“The Quad is going to be a vital arena for cooperation,” said Biden, who was presiding from the White House over the meeting held virtually with the other leaders appearing on video screens.