WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden hosted the Quad Group, made up of the leaders of the US, India, Australia and Japan, at the White House on Friday. At the invitation of Biden, Indian Premier Narendra Modi and his counterparts Scott Morrison from Australia and Yoshihide Suga from Japan gathered here for the first-ever in-person Quad summit at the White House.

In November 2017, India, Japan, the US and Australia gave shape to the long-pending proposal of setting up the Quad to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence, amidst China’s growing military presence in the strategic region.

India, Australia, Japan and the US on Friday pledged to work together for ensuring peace and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific and the world, as top leaders of the Quad grouping announced a slew of new initiatives to take on common challenges, amidst muscle flexing by an assertive China in the strategic region.

In a way, Quad would play the role as Force for Global good, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his short address and exuded confidence that this cooperation by the four democracies will ensure peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and the world.

Modi was the first leader invited by host Biden to address the gathering in the East Room of the White House. Opening the summit, Biden said the four democracies have come together to take on common challenges from COVID to climate. This group has democratic partners who share world views and have common vision for the future, he said.

Quad will bring peace and prosperity to the Indo-Pacific region and the world with its positive approach, Modi said at the start of the summit. "On the basis of democratic values, Quad with positive ideas and a positive approach is determined to move forward," Modi said on Friday at the White House seated around a flower-bedecked island with the other leaders, Biden, Suga and Morrison.

"Whether it is supply chain, security, climate action, COVID response, or technology cooperation, I am happy to discuss them with our friends," he said. "Our Quad is united as a force for good to work for the world. I am confident that our Quad assistance in the Indo-Pacific and in the world will bring peace and prosperity," he added.

Modi on Friday said that that the Quad vaccine initiative will help Indo-Pacific nations as the world is battling with COVID-19. He said that the world is battling with COVID-19 and the Quad members again came together in the interest of humanity.

In March, the India-US-Japan-Australia Quadrilateral initiative, or Quad decided to build a first-of-its-kind joint vaccine supply chain to address the current and any future pandemic situations in the Indo-Pacific region.

Vaccines will be developed in the US, manufactured in India, financed by Japan and the US, and supported by Australia through logistics for the Indo-Pacific including island states.

"Our Quad vaccine initiative will help Indo-Pacific nations. Quad decided to go ahead with a positive approach on basis of our shared democratic values. I would be happy to discuss with my friends-be it supply chain, global security, climate action, COVID response or tech cooperation," Modi said at Quad Summit.

While China was not officially on the agenda, a senior US official told reporters the quartet stressed backing for a "free and open" Asia, which is a phrase often standing in for containing China before it dominates the region, including vital international sea lanes. Concern is growing about Beijing's posturing in the Indo-Pacific region, in particular its repeated flying of warplanes close to Taiwan, which it considers to be a renegade province.

"When we met six months ago, we made concrete commitments to advance our shared and positive agenda for a free and open Indo-Pacific. Today, I'm proud to say that we're making excellent progress," Biden said.

"We stand here together in the Indo-Pacific region, a region that we wish to be always free from coercion, where the sovereign rights of all nations are respected, and where disputes are settled peacefully and in accordance with international law," said Morrison.

The Japanese and Indian governments welcomed a recent announcement that the US, as part of a new alliance with Britain and Australia, would equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of American lawmakers on Friday welcomed the first-ever in-person Quad summit hosted by Biden. The US lawmakers, in a joint statement, said that the Quad is taking critical steps to expand technological cooperation and military interoperability from the virtual heads of state summit, vaccine partnership, and supply chain resilience initiative earlier this spring to the successful exercise MALABAR last month.

Also the leaders of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States, said, in a joint statement, “On this historic occasion we recommit to our partnership, and to a region that is a bedrock of our shared security and prosperity — a free and open Indo-Pacific, which is also inclusive and resilient. Just six months have passed since our last meeting.

“Since March, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused continued global suffering; the climate crisis has accelerated; and regional security has become ever-more complex, testing all of our countries individually and together. Our cooperation, however, remains unflinching.”

They also reaffirmed their strong support for ASEAN’s unity and centrality and for ASEAN’s Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, saying, “We underscore our dedication towards working with ASEAN and its member states — the heart of the Indo-Pacific region — in practical and inclusive ways. We also welcome the September 2021 EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.”

They also would strengthen their Science and Technology (S&T) cooperation in the areas of clinical trials and genomic surveillance so that they can accelerate their efforts to end this pandemic and build better health security. “We are committed to align around shared global targets to help vaccinate the world, save lives now, and build back better, including by strengthening global health security financing and political leadership. Our countries will also conduct a joint pandemic-preparedness tabletop or exercise in 2022.”

“Today, we begin new cooperation in cyber space and pledge to work together to combat cyber threats, promote resilience, and secure our critical infrastructure. In space we will identify new collaboration opportunities and share satellite data for peaceful purposes such as monitoring climate change, disaster response and preparedness, sustainable uses of oceans and marine resources, and on responding to challenges in shared domains. We will also consult on rules, norms, guidelines and principles for ensuring the sustainable use of outer space,” they said.

“We are proud to begin a new chapter of educational and people-to-people cooperation as we inaugurate the Quad Fellowship. Stewarded by Schmidt Futures, a philanthropic initiative, and with generous support from Accenture, Blackstone, Boeing, Google, Mastercard, and Western Digital this pilot fellowship program will provide 100 graduate fellowships to leading science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduate students across our four countries.” — Agencies