What does the "Quad" forum refer to?

The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QSD) or Quad group is an inter- governmental forum comprising of India, Japan, Australia, and the United States of America. Quad was formed in 2007 as all these four countries came together. However, it did not take off initially for a number of reasons and was revived in 2017 after a decade due to reasons such as growing convergence among countries, increasing significance of the Indo- Pacific regional threat perception vis-a-vis China among others. It became a trilateral excercise with the addition of Japan in 2015.

Since then, Quad emerged as a platform for diplomatic consultation and coordination of participants countries who meet regularly to discuss mutual interests such as ensuring free, open and rules based international order. Main objectives are - advancing the inter- governmental security and the economic interests of member countries, to develop a new strategy to keep critical sea routes in the Indo- Pacific free influence ( especially China), framing post- Covid -19 international order.

In a 2021 joint statement , " The spirit of the Quad," Quad members described a shared vision for a Free and Open Indo- Pacific," and a "rules-based maritime order in the East and South China Seas," which Quad members state are needed to counter Chinese maritime claims.