The Quadrilateral Initiative: An Evaluation

Asia’s emergence as the world’s fastest-growing region, with rising military expenditures and a substantial restructuring of power, has given rise to new strategic alliances and coalitions between the region’s major players. The quadrilateral initiative, a grouping of the United States (US), Japan, Australia and India, emerged after tsunami cooperation in 2004 between these four countries and was later advocated by the Japanese Premier. Strategically designed to balance power and tackle issues like transnational security, terrorism and sea piracy in the Asia-Pacific region, the Quad was put on the backburner following Beijing’s protests that it had been specifically designed to encircle it. Nevertheless, India’s strategic ties with the US, Australia and Japan are growing and the US links with Japan and Australia have been strengthened in the Trilateral Security Dialogue. The article examines the factors that justify the existence of the Quad and asserts that the possibility of strategic partnership among these four maritime democracies remains alive.