Jaishankar, Blinken hold bilateral talks in Tokyo ahead of Quad meet
On Monday, the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting is expected to assess work being done by working groups in a wide range of areas and discuss arrangements for holding the Quad Leaders Summit, which will be hosted by India this year
New Delhi: External affairs minister S Jaishankar met US secretary of state Antony Blinken in Tokyo on Sunday and discussed bilateral relations ahead of a Quad foreign ministers’ meeting.
“Our bilateral agenda progresses steadily. Also had a wide-ranging discussion on regional and global issues,” Jaishankar said on X after the meeting.
“Look forward to attending the Quad FMM tomorrow,” he added.
Jaishankar started his visit to Japan by unveiling a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Edogawa ward. He arrived in Tokyo from the Laos capital of Vientiane, where he attended several Asean-related meetings.
On Monday, the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting is expected to assess work being done by working groups in a wide range of areas and discuss arrangements for holding the Quad Leaders Summit, which will be hosted by India this year.
The Quad foreign ministers are expected to take forward cooperation in key areas such as infrastructure, supply chains, connectivity, research, counterterrorism, maritime security, and humanitarian and disaster responses.
They are also expected to discuss cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries and institutions on a positive agenda that responds to the region’s pressing challenges.
The dates for the Quad Leaders Summit are yet to be fixed, mainly because of the US administration’s preoccupation with the presidential election in November and domestic political problems being faced by Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.
The four members of Quad—India, Australia, Japan, and the US—are reportedly exploring the possibility of holding the summit on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York in September. However, Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party is set to hold its internal presidential election in September.
The people cited above said there is also the possibility that the summit could be held after the US presidential election in November.