January 22, 2025: India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, participated in the Quad Foreign Ministers' meeting in Washington DC on Tuesday, marking a significant moment in international diplomacy just a day after Donald Trump took the oath of office as the 47th President of the United States.

Jaishankar expressed his gratitude to the new U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, for hosting the meeting, highlighting its importance in the evolving global order. “This underlines the priority it has in the foreign policy of its member states,” Jaishankar tweeted, underscoring the significance of the timing of the meeting so soon after the Trump administration's inauguration.

During the discussions, Jaishankar and his counterparts – including Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong, Japan's Takeshi Iwaya, and Rubio – explored various strategies for ensuring a free and prosperous Indo-Pacific. "Our wide-ranging discussions addressed different dimensions of ensuring a free, open, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific," Jaishankar noted.

In his tweet, the Indian Minister reaffirmed the Quad's commitment to intensifying collaboration. "We agreed on the importance of thinking bigger, deepening the agenda, and intensifying our collaboration," Jaishankar said, adding that the meeting sent a strong message of unity among the member nations. "In an uncertain and volatile world, the Quad will continue to be a force for global good," he stated.

The Quad, a strategic grouping of the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia, remains focused on addressing regional security concerns, particularly with regard to China's military assertiveness in the South China Sea. The Quad nations reiterated their commitment to international law, economic opportunity, peace, stability, and security in the Indo-Pacific region, and strongly opposed any unilateral actions aimed at altering the status quo through force or coercion.

The ministers' joint statement emphasized that the prosperity and development of the Indo-Pacific depend on these principles, and reaffirmed the Quad’s role in maintaining a rules-based international order.

In addition to the Quad discussions, Jaishankar held his first bilateral talks with Secretary of State Rubio, focusing on strengthening U.S.-India ties amidst the shifting geopolitical landscape.

The Quad meeting is seen as a significant diplomatic move under President Trump's second term, signaling continuity in American foreign policy and reinforcing the importance of the Indo-Pacific as a priority for member nations.