The QUAD grouping of India, the US, Australia and Japan met officials of the Philippines and discussed maritime security challenges in the Indo-Pacific during the recently held Raisina Dialogue. In the meet, China was a key topic of the talks.
Photo : iStock
The concern around China’s aggressive approach in the South China Sea has become a point of discussion again as the Philippines has asked India to join a new military ‘Squad’ along with the US, Australia and Japan. According to a report, the new strategic alliance aims to counter such threats in the crucial Indo-Pacific region.
Philippines Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces General Romeo S Brawner said India and South Korea should also be ‘included’ in the Squad, as he pointed to China’s “illegal, coercive and disruptive Grey Zone” methods to claim territory and strengthen its military in the South China Sea region, a Reuters report stated.
The Squad is an informal multilateral grouping comprising Australia, Japan, the Philippines and the United States, whose defence forces have been conducting joint maritime activities in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea since last year.
The QUADgrouping of India, the US, Australia and Japan met officials of the Philippines and discussed maritime security challenges in the Indo-Pacific during the recently held Raisina Dialogue. In the meet, China was a key point of the talks.
“The three artificial islands created by China give it effective control over the South China Sea. They have built a 2.7-km runway, with air defence and other missile systems, on Mischief Reef…Moving forward, it is our belief that they will take full control of the South China Sea,” Gen Brawner said, quoted TOI.
“Together with Japan and our partners we are trying to expand the squad to include India and probably South Korea,” he added.
China has long claimed supremacy in the South-China Sea strong-arming its neighbours in the region and Taiwan Strait. It has always pushed for territorial claims, denouncing all international norms. Japanese Chief of Joint Staff Gen Yoshihide Yoshida said the country is doubling its defence spending to improve its current war-fighting capabilities.
Present at the meeting, US Indo-Pacific Command chief Admiral Samuel Paparo said all countries that believe matters should not be “settled by force” should build and maintain a strong deterrence posture, hinting towards China and its repetitive claims in the region and on Taiwan.
Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi meanwhile said India believed it was its responsibility to ensure that the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) remains peaceful and stable. He said the passage should have unhindered access to trade. “A Navy that does not deploy does not deter. So, we have been deploying far and wide…We are quite capable of maintaining MDA (maritime domain awareness) in the IOR. We are aware of who is doing what, where and how,” he said.
The Navy chief further said that India is “keeping a close watch” on dual-purpose and other naval vessels operating in the IOR.
