Japan, other Quad nations, agree close cooperation over Ukraine crisis

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:30 JST, March 4, 2022

Leaders of the so-called Quad nations agreed during a videoconference late Thursday to cooperate closely over the crisis in Ukraine.

The joint announcement by the four leaders of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, U.S. President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison — confirmed that face-to-face talks would take place in Tokyo in the coming months.

Thursday’s meeting was called by the United States and lasted about 70 minutes.

Against a background of increasing Chinese hegemony, the four leaders agreed that unilateral changes to the status quo, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, must not be allowed in the Indo-Pacific region.

They also reaffirmed their commitment to efforts aimed at realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific.

India, which traditionally has maintained friendly relations with Russia, abstained from voting on a resolution condemning Moscow at an emergency special session of the U.N. General Assembly held Wednesday.

The Quad leaders’ joint announcement did not explicitly denounce Russia by name.