Pompeo asks ‘Quad’ allies to stand against China’s ‘corruption, coercion’

Speaking with his Japanese, Indian and Australian counterparts in Tokyo, Mike Pompeo said cooperation against Beijing now more critical than ever
The US, Australia and India are all at loggerheads with Beijing, while Japan walks a tightrope trying to preserve ties

US-China relations: the Asian angle

Agence France-Presse

Published: 1:59pm, 6 Oct, 2020

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on key Asian allies to unite against China’s “exploitation, corruption and coercion” in the region, as he held talks in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Pompeo was speaking at the start of discussions with his Japanese, Indian and Australian counterparts – the so-called Quad grouping, seeking to present a united front against an increasingly assertive Beijing.

But it was the top US diplomat who took the hardest line on China, referring to the “pandemic that came from Wuhan”, which he said was “made infinitely worse by the Chinese Communist Party’s cover-up”.

He warned it was “more critical now than ever that we collaborate to protect our people and partners from the CCP’s exploitation, corruption and coercion”, citing China’s actions in the Himalayas, Taiwan Strait and elsewhere.

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This rhetoric was not fully echoed by Washington’s partners in the grouping, although Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne pointedly spoke of the desire for a region “governed by rules, not power”.

The talks come with Washington, Canberra and New Delhi all at loggerheads with Beijing.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar noted the fact that the meeting was happening at all, given the coronavirus pandemic, was “testimony to the importance” of the alliance.

But Japan, under the leadership of new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, is seeking to balance the need to support its allies with its desire to continue gradually improving ties with China.

“Lately, the present international order has been challenged in various fields and the new coronavirus is accelerating the trend,” Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said at the start of the meeting. “Our four countries share the objective of strengthening a free and open, rule-based international order.”

He notably did not mention China in his initial remarks, and the government said the talks are not directed at any one country.

But the foreign ministers later affirmed they will step up coordination to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific, and Motegi said they exchanged views on China’s attempts to undermine Tokyo’s administration of the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea and Beijing’s militarisation of disputed areas in the South China Sea.

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The ministers agreed to boost cooperation over maritime security, cyberspace and the building of quality infrastructure in the region, he said.

They also agreed to hold the four-way foreign ministerial meeting on a regular basis, and convene a third session at an appropriate time next year, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meet in Tokyo. Photo: AFP

Pompeo’s visit, which included bilateral talks with his counterparts as well as a meeting with Suga, took place despite the coronavirus crisis in Washington, where President Donald Trump and several staff and advisers have tested positive.

Although planned stops in South Korea and Mongolia were scrapped, Pompeo said it was important to go ahead with the four-way talks in Tokyo, promising “significant announcements”.

However, no joint statement or press conference is expected after the meeting.

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Pompeo is a vociferous critic of China on issues from security to human rights to the pandemic, which Trump’s administration has sought to blame squarely on Beijing ahead of the US election next month.

He is the first senior American official to visit Japan since Suga took office last month, and he said he was confident Tokyo and Washington were on the same page.

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Earlier on Tuesday, Suga said the spread of the coronavirus had shown “exactly why right now is the time that we must further deepen coordination with as many countries as possible that share our vision”.

But he too avoided any specific mention of Beijing, which has made clear its disdain for the grouping, and last week urged countries to avoid “closed and exclusive cliques”.

“We hope the relevant countries can proceed from the common interests of countries in the region, and do more things that are conducive to regional peace, stability and development, not the other way around,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.

‘Quad’ group foreign ministers meet in Tokyo. Photo: AP

The Quad grouping was heavily promoted by Japan’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe as a way for the region’s major democracies to step up cooperation in the face of military and other threats posed by China.

The first Quad meeting took place in New York last year, and there are moves to make the gathering an annual event.

Additional reporting by Kyodo

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Pompeo meets ‘Quad’ allies in Tokyo

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