In first-ever trilateral summit, India-Japan-US focus on ‘inclusive' Indo-Pacific
Indrani Bagchi | TNN | Dec 1, 2018, 04:18 ISTHighlights
- Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi met for a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit
- Seeking to counter China's aggressive expansionism, the trilateral is also the core group that sustains other groups like the Quadrilateral
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi pose for a pictu... Read MoreNEW DELHI: In the first-ever trilateral summit between India, Japan and the US, the three countries focused on building a regional architecture in the Indo-Pacific region, stressing on the new framework being "inclusive".
This being the first trilateral on the margins of the G-20, the meeting seals the importance of the Indo-Pacific framework as a new policy architecture in this region. In his remarks, PM Narendra Modi is learned to have put out five action points — connectivity, sustainable development, maritime security, disaster relief and freedom of navigation — as issues with which the trilateral group should engage the countries of the region.
India has been stressing the importance of keeping the Indo-Pacific construct open and inclusive, both to reassure countries of the region as well as to counter China's contention that the Quad/Indo-Pacific was an exclusive club.
Seeking to counter China's aggressive expansionism, the trilateral is also the core group that sustains other groups like the Quadrilateral. This is significant because officials from the participating countries have been recently quoted as saying that the Quad was "one of the many mechanisms" in the Indo-Pacific.
Meanwhile, Modi held a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, as well as a Brics group. The Brics meeting, according to foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale, focused on the reform of multilateral organisations, and strengthening mechanisms like the FATF to be able to tackle terror financing.
With Xi, Modi held his fourth meeting of the year, following up on the Wuhan understanding, Gokhale said. Xi told Modi that China had started importing some commodities from India, and was hoping to import soybean as well. Both leaders expressed appreciation at the enhanced engagement especially on the border management processes.
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi will travel to India in the third week of December for the strategic dialogue with Sushma Swaraj on people-to-people contact.
This being the first trilateral on the margins of the G-20, the meeting seals the importance of the Indo-Pacific framework as a new policy architecture in this region. In his remarks, PM Narendra Modi is learned to have put out five action points — connectivity, sustainable development, maritime security, disaster relief and freedom of navigation — as issues with which the trilateral group should engage the countries of the region.
India has been stressing the importance of keeping the Indo-Pacific construct open and inclusive, both to reassure countries of the region as well as to counter China's contention that the Quad/Indo-Pacific was an exclusive club.
Seeking to counter China's aggressive expansionism, the trilateral is also the core group that sustains other groups like the Quadrilateral. This is significant because officials from the participating countries have been recently quoted as saying that the Quad was "one of the many mechanisms" in the Indo-Pacific.
Meanwhile, Modi held a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, as well as a Brics group. The Brics meeting, according to foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale, focused on the reform of multilateral organisations, and strengthening mechanisms like the FATF to be able to tackle terror financing.
With Xi, Modi held his fourth meeting of the year, following up on the Wuhan understanding, Gokhale said. Xi told Modi that China had started importing some commodities from India, and was hoping to import soybean as well. Both leaders expressed appreciation at the enhanced engagement especially on the border management processes.
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi will travel to India in the third week of December for the strategic dialogue with Sushma Swaraj on people-to-people contact.
Download The Times of India News App for Latest India News.
All Comments ()+^ Back to Top
Refrain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks, name calling or inciting hatred against any community. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by marking them offensive. Let's work together to keep the conversation civil.
HIDE