Quad: The NATO of Asia?
US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo travelled to Japan to held talks with his counterparts from Australia, India and Japan during the Quad ministerial meeting. The trip was important for USA as can be seen from the fact that after the POTUS tested positive for Covid-19, Pompeo cancelled most of his Asia trip, except this Quad meet. It's obvious why this meet was a priority for USA. Washington was at loggerheads with Beijing over a wide range of issues from Beijing’s handling of the coronavirus to its imposition of a new security law in Hong Kong and ambitions in the South China Sea. Pompeo criticised China' s policy of “exploitation, corruption, and coercion” during the meet. His counterparts though; namely Australia’s Marise Payne, Japan’s Toshimitsu Motegi & India's S. Jaishankar were more diplomatic in their tone. In his speech, S. Jaishankar spoke of shared commitments that Quad members have "as vibrant & pluralistic democracies with shared values&qu