New Delhi, June 1 -- With eyes fixed on West Asia and Europe as they manage turbulence and conflicts, the capacity and relevance of the Quad have been called into question. The Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting in New Delhi on 26 May sought to put that notion to rest. Attended by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the foreign ministers of India, Japan and Australia, the grouping is moving into a more practical phase.

Arguments suggest that President Donald Trump's transactional approach to China - reflected in his desire to stabilise trade ties with Beijing and possible ambiguity over Taiwan - has weakened Washington's appetite for a sharper Indo-Pacific security posture and, in turn, weakened the Quad. The Quad has been seen as losin...