QUAD

QUAD is an informal strategic forum between Japan, Australia, the United States, and India. The forum is maintained by information exchanges, semi-regular summits, and military drills between the members. The forum was started in 2007 as a dialogue by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with the support of US Vice President Dick Cheney, Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The dialogue was paralleled by joint military exercises, titled Exercise Malabar. In 2020, Australia joined the Malabar exercise for the first time. This resulted in the participation of all four countries of the forum in the Malabar exercise for the 1st time. The 2nd Ministerial meeting of QUAD countries was held in October 2020 in Tokyo, Japan.