Quad Leaders Commit to a ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’ Amid Concerns Over China Influence

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a 'Quad nations' meeting at the Leaders' Summit of the Quadrilateral Framework hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden with Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga in the East Room at the White House in Washington, on Sept. 24, 2021. Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters

Leaders of the United States, Australia, India, and Japan, released a lengthy joint statement on Friday, in part declaring their commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” that is “undaunted by coercion” amid continued efforts from communist China to wrestle influence over the globe.

The statement from leaders of “the Quad,” or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, was released shortly after their first-ever in-person meeting, which lasted two hours at the White House in Washington, D.C.