Four Plus Two Minus

Quad summit shows India matters in an emerging world order. But the Af-Pak challenge remains

- Indrani Bagchi

The first in-person Quad summit in Washington DC marked the start of 21st-century foreign policy. India, the US, Japan and Australia took the high road to “recognise that our shared futures will be written in the IndoPacific.” Buried in the Quad joint statement, this acknowledgement effectively pivots the Quad towards the oceans, China, and a whole new set of challenges that will test these powers as never before. Because what’s at stake is a new world order, with new standards and ways of cooperation. It’s not the United Nations, but interlocking groups of converging and connecting countries.

Technology, big enough, is foreign policy, and that was the singular message from the summit. It is deeply reassuring because a collaborative future by building 21st-century technology backbone is key to a multipolar world order.

While it might be argued that the core of the Quad is the US-China rivalry, the fact is all four powers – and several more besides – would be opposed to a Sino-centric, closed world order. The alternative won’t always be fair or equitable, but at least one in which India can have its share and say.

The three Cs – Covid, critical technologies and climate – dominated proceedings. India announced the restart of its vaccine exports – among the most lamentable decisions by GoI in recent times has been shutting the vaccine export pipeline, because it failed to do basic math.