Former United States Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster has said that China’s continuous aggression against Quad will energize the alliance further.
Speaking at a webinar organized by the Centre for Global India Insight (CGII), Juster said that the US and India should join a mega-trade bloc to check Beijing’s economic domination in the region.
Juster further said that China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region is fueling India’s enthusiasm and participation in tackling its neighbour. His remarks came days after the first-ever in-person Quad meeting was held in Washington where all the leaders of the member countries attended and discussed the situation in detail.
“While the Quad is not focused explicitly on China, to the degree that Chinese continue to be aggressive in their actions, you're going to see continued energy in the Quad,” said Juster at the CGII webinar, which is a think tank focused on foreign affairs.
Responding to one of the questions on how far the Quad can bolster its constituent countries’ capacity to deal with China, Juster said that China’s aggression will energize the Quad.
“There is absolutely no doubt that as the Chinese behaviour has become more aggressive in the region, including on the northern border with India, but also in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, some claims in Bhutan and elsewhere, this has energized the Quad, and in particular, India's enthusiasm and participation in it,” said Mr Juster.
Juster then talked about India’s economic responsibility and argued that it’s important for New Delhi to bolster its economic power. Even though it is dented by the pandemic, it will play a major and proactive role in shaping the Quad, according to Juster.
In this context, the envoy exhorted India and the US to sign a Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP) to curb China’s ambitions for economic hegemony. Mr Juster’s exhortation came days after China announced its intention to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP).
