In its first foreign policy engagement, the Donald Trump administration hosted a meeting of Quad foreign ministers where the US, Japan, India, and Australia committed to strengthening “maritime, economy and technology security in the face of increasing threats”, expressed their goal of a “free and open Indo-Pacific”, and agreed to “think bigger, deepen agenda and intensify cooperation”.

With a clear eye on China, secretary of state Marco Rubio, external affairs minister S Jaishankar, Australian foreign minister Penny Wong, and Japan’s foreign minister Takeshi Iwaya also opposed any “unilateral actions that sought to change the status quo by force or coercion” and agreed to strengthen supply chain resilience and reliability. They emphasised the principles of the rule of law, democracy, sovereignty, territorial integrity, international law, economic opportunity, and peace, stability, and security, especially in the maritime domain.

The four foreign ministers met on the eighth floor of the State Department in Washington DC on Tuesday afternoon Eastern in what was Rubio’s first official engagement as Secretary of State.