While NSC Director Jake Sullivan told the press on March 12 that China was not the prime focus of the talks between the leaders of the Quad, it was clear that it was “the elephant in the room.” The U.S. and the Western oligarchs have been acutely aware of the speed with which China has provided its vaccines to the rest of the world. India, which is still suffering a major outbreak among its own people, nonetheless has a huge capacity to produce drugs and vaccines, and welcomed the U.S. and others to produce their vaccines for developing countries in India. The Quad basically affirmed this by giving financial and other support to India to produce Johnson & Johnson and other vaccines. Japan would help to bankroll the initiative and the Aussies would provide logistical support. All well and good, as the world needs more vaccines.
Sullivan said that the fact the meeting was held between the four leaders was more important than the decisions taken there. “Each of the leaders independently, in the course of the meeting, referred to this event as “historic” because it cemented a group of strong that will work together going forward to secure a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Sullivan said. And other issues were also touched upon. “During the meeting, the leaders addressed key regional issues including freedom of navigation and freedom from coercion in the South and East China Seas; the DPRK nuclear issue; and the coup and violent repression in Burma. The President and his counterparts also spoke to the competition of models between autocracy and democracy, and expressed their confidence that, despite setbacks and imperfections, democracy is the best system to deliver for people and to meet the economic, social, and technological challenges of the 21st century.”
