The Quad leaders have reaffirmed their commitment to the 'force of Global Good,' making several significant announcements aimed at addressing the development priorities of the Indo-Pacific region and the global community. US President Joe Biden hosted Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Wilmington, Delaware, for the fourth Quad Leaders' Summit on September 21. To advance the Quad agenda, the leaders adopted the Quad Wilmington Declaration.
This year, the Quad announced several tangible projects benefiting partner countries across the Indo-Pacific, including the Pacific, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean Region. Notable initiatives include the 'Quad Cancer Moonshot,' a groundbreaking partnership to combat cervical cancer and save lives in the Indo-Pacific region. Another key announcement was the 'Maritime Initiative for Training in the Indo-Pacific' (MAITRI), which aims to maximize tools provided through the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) and support open science for space-based monitoring of extreme weather events and climate impact.
The leaders also pledged a collective Quad effort to boost energy efficiency, including the deployment and manufacturing of high-efficiency, affordable cooling systems in the Indo-Pacific region. Additionally, they announced the first 'Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission' in 2025 to improve interoperability and advance maritime safety, as well as the 'Quad Ports of the Future Partnership,' which will harness the Quad's collective expertise to support sustainable and resilient port infrastructure development across the Indo-Pacific.
The Quad leaders also announced the 'Quad Principles for Development and Deployment of Digital Public Infrastructure' in the region and beyond. Furthermore, they unveiled a 'Semiconductor Supply Chains Contingency Network Memorandum of Cooperation' to enhance the resilience of Quad's semiconductor supply chains. India also announced the establishment of a space-based web portal for Mauritius to support open science for space-based monitoring of extreme weather events and climate impact.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a $5 lakh scholarship for Indo-Pacific students at the Quad leaders summit, enabling 50 recipients to pursue a four-year undergraduate engineering program at a Government of India-funded technical institution. Modi reaffirmed India's commitment to the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) and described the grouping as 'Quick Unified Assistance Delivery,' emphasizing that the regional body 'is here to stay.'
During his three-day visit to the United States, PM Modi held bilateral talks with the Quad leaders, including President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Japanese Prime Minister Kishida extended support to Modi's initiative to organize Voice of Global South Summits, while Australian Prime Minister Albanese termed India a 'predominant power in the Indian Ocean.'
The Quad governments intend to work with their respective legislatures to deepen interparliamentary exchanges and encourage other stakeholders to engage with Quad counterparts. US Members of Congress announced the creation of a bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Quad Caucus. In the coming months, Quad Commerce and Industry ministers will meet for the first time. The Quad leaders also welcomed the leaders of the Quad Development Finance Institutions and Agencies, who decided to meet to explore future investments by the four countries in the Indo-Pacific, including in health security, food security, clean energy, and quality infrastructure.
In response to the current mpox outbreaks, the Quad plans to coordinate efforts to promote equitable access to safe, effective, quality-assured mpox vaccines, including expanding vaccine manufacturing in low and middle-income countries. In 2023, Quad partners announced the first-ever Open RAN deployment in the Pacific, in Palau, to support a secure, resilient, and interconnected telecommunications ecosystem. The Quad has committed approximately $20 million to this effort and plans to expand Open RAN collaboration to deliver trusted technology solutions.
The Quad also plans to expand support for ongoing Open RAN field trials and the Asia Open RAN Academy (AORA) in the Philippines, building on the initial $8 million in support pledged by the United States and Japan earlier this year. The United States plans to invest over $7 million to support the global expansion of AORA, including establishing a first-of-its-kind Open RAN workforce training initiative at scale in South Asia, in partnership with Indian institutions. Quad partners also welcome the opportunity to explore additional Open RAN projects in Southeast Asia and will collaborate with the Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation to ensure the country's readiness for nationwide 5G deployment.
