The four leaders of the "Quad" group of countries vowed on Tuesday to work together for a free and open Indo-Pacific region and to fight climate change, as they met for talks aimed at standing up to an increasingly assertive China, APA reports citing Reuters.
U.S. President Joe Biden, at the opening of talks with the leaders of three "close democratic partners", including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, condemned the Russia-Ukraine war as not just a European issue but a global one.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, echoed that, saying the same thing should not be allowed to happen in Asia.
Taiwan was not an official item on the Quad agenda, a U.S. official said, but it was expected to be an important topic a day after Biden broke with convention and volunteered U.S. military support for the self-governed island claimed by China.
"This is more than just a European issue, it's a global issue," Biden said of the Ukraine, as the talks, which include Australia's new prime minister, Anthony Albanese, got underway.
Biden stressed that the United States would stand with its allies to push for a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
"Russia's assault of Ukraine only heightens the importance of those goals of fundamental principles of international order, territorial integrity and sovereignty. International law, human rights must always be defended regardless of where they're violated in the world," he said.
Kishida said the Russia-Ukraine war "shakes the foundation of international order" and was a direct challenge to the principles of the United Nations.
"We should not allow similar things to happen in the Indo-Pacific region," he said.
Modi made no comment on Ukraine or Russia in his remarks. India has frustrated the United States with what it regards as a lack of support for U.S.-led sanctions and condemnation of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Though India has developed close U.S. ties in recent years and is a vital part of the Quad grouping aimed at pushing back against China, it also has a long-standing relationship with Russia, which remains a major supplier of its defense equipment and oil supplies.
India abstained in U.N. Security Council votes on the Russia-Ukraine war, though it did raise concerns about some killings of Ukrainian civilians.
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