At the second meeting among members of Quad nations — India, the United States of America, Japan and Australia — it was evident that the proverbial elephant in the room was the dragon, in a manner of speaking. China’s belligerence and aggressive posturing not only on the border with India but also in the Indo-Pacific stretch had lent a degree of urgency to the deliberations in Tokyo. Expectedly, the US, given its trade wars with Beijing under the Donald Trump administration, chose not to mince words, calling for the protection of people and partnerships from an expansionist template being pursued by its adversary. The Indian foreign minister, S. Jaishankar, called for respecting territorial sovereignty as well as peaceful resolution of disputes. The simmering tensions in Ladakh undoubtedly set the tenor of
Mr Jaishankar’s reasoning. The Japanese foreign minister appreciated global efforts to realize the goal of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” while his Australian counterpart — this is significant — mentioned the threat from malicious cyberspace activity.

New Delhi would undoubtedly like to project the meeting as a signal of the closure of ranks among Quad members. This may be so but it cannot be denied that at the moment the glue that is making the partners stick is the lengthening shadow of Beijing. Given that strategic imperatives are bound to shift, it makes sense on the part of Quad nations to find other, equally substantial, avenues to cement this fledgling association. Among all the members, India perhaps has to do most of the soul-searching. This is because Quad symbolizes an opportunity as well as a challenge. While New Delhi has reasons to view Quad as a platform to consolidate its presence on other international fora, it must also be careful so as not to step into the trap of restrictive cooperation. India must retain the foresight to choose its partnerships in accordance with its own strategic needs and refrain from bartering its autonomy for the assurance of security. It will be a fine balancing act that will test New Delhi’s will and wisdom.