A Brief History of the Quad

Introduction

This page features an interactive display of a brief history of the Quad. The quartet’s antecedents are traced back to a group coordinating a response to the “Boxing Day” tsunami in 2004 that struck Sumatra in the eastern Indian Ocean. The “Tsunami Core Group” — as it became known — coordinated disaster and humanitarian relief efforts over nine days across 2004-05. Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Japan in 2006 led to the release of an India-Japan “Strategic and Global Partnership” joint statement, noting the usefulness of having a dialogue among India, Japan “…and other like-minded countries in the Asia-Pacific region on themes of mutual interest”. After a few initial meetings, the Quad had already hit icebergs in 2008. 

In 2017, senior officials from the Quad countries met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ARF). The grouping has expanded to regular foreign ministerial consultations, and since 2021, leader-level annual summits. 

Below is an interactive display of the Quad’s sectoral focuses and numerous working groups.