The US has rejected a media report claiming that the Quad alliance between the United States, India, Australia and Japan is faltering under President Donald Trump's administration, saying Washington is working to formalise a summit of the grouping's leaders in Manila next week.
Responding to a report by Politico, US Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson said Secretary of State Marco Rubio had held several meetings with his counterparts from the Quad countries and that regular discussions between officials were continuing.
In a post on X, Johnson wrote, "This is an utterly ridiculous take. @SecRubio has formally met with the Quad foreign ministers five times in the past two years — with three meetings in the past six months. The Secretary’s first official call in office was to the Quad. We have regular monthly Quad sherpa calls and meetings. And we are working to formalize a Quad Leaders Summit at ASEAN next week. Fake News!"
The response came after a November 14, 2026, Politico report claimed that the Trump administration's policy approach and perceived lack of engagement had left the strategic grouping "on life support".
Trump spent two years pursuing trade wars, aloof diplomacy and an embrace of Beijing that undermined the four-nation Asia-Pacific alliance created to counter a rising China, the Politico report opined.
The Quad group was created in 2007, but went mostly dormant the following year amid concerns about provoking China.
In 2017, Trump revived it to address growing concerns about China’s increasing economic, diplomatic and military heft in the Indo-Pacific, though he never held a leaders’ summit. Joe Biden participated in six Quad leaders' meetings — two of them virtual — during his presidency. He hosted the last meeting of the Quad in Delaware in 2024.
Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to travel to Manila for the ASEAN meetings and the East Asia Summit (EAS), which will be held from November 16 to 18 under the Philippines' chairmanship.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced his visit on Thursday.
However, the MEA has not confirmed whether Modi will meet Trump on the sidelines or whether the Quad leaders will hold a separate meeting.
At a special briefing, Secretary (East) Rudrendra Tandon said, "This is a programme that is quickly being developed and we don't have information as of now about it, except that the PM is attending the ASEAN meet in the Philippines."
Last month, Rubio said the four Quad countries had agreed to hold the summit in Manila. He emphasised that it would deliver "concrete actions" rather than serve as a social gathering.
A meeting between Modi and Trump in Manila would be their first encounter since the Republican Party suffered setbacks in the US midterm elections earlier this month. It would also come amid ongoing negotiations over an India-US trade deal, which has yet to be signed.
The two leaders last met at the G7 summit in France and spoke over the phone in September. Further interactions are expected when Modi travels to Florida for the G20 Summit in mid-December.
According to the Philippine government, at least 19 leaders representing sovereign nations and international organisations are expected to attend the Manila summit. They include Chinese Premier Li Qiang, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
India's engagement with ASEAN
Tandon described India's engagement with ASEAN, an 11-member regional bloc, as a key pillar of its Act East policy.
"We strongly believe that, as an Indian Ocean country that abuts this very important Southeast Asian maritime zone, a strong strategic relationship with the ASEAN member states, as a collective as well as individually, is good for both of us," he added.
Trade between India and ASEAN is worth approximately $122 billion. New Delhi has been pursuing a comprehensive review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) to address persistent trade deficits.
Tandon said the review was taking time because of the complexity of multilateral negotiations involving several countries. However, he added that bilateral measures to facilitate trade were being pursued separately.
On maritime security in the South China Sea, the MEA reiterated that any proposed ASEAN-China Code of Conduct must comply fully with international maritime law, particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Regional diplomatic channels have indicated that negotiations are likely to extend beyond the projected end-2026 deadline.
India-Philippines defence ties, Myanmar crisis
India and the Philippines have also strengthened their defence ties in recent years. In 2022, Manila became India's first foreign customer for the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, signing a $375 million contract for three shore-based anti-ship batteries.
During a think-tank discussion in New Delhi last week, Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said his government wanted to acquire more units. He also revealed that Manila had submitted a formal wish list to Indian counterparts to tailor the defence system to local geographical terrain and operating conditions.
On the political crisis in Myanmar, whose military administration remains excluded from high-level ASEAN meetings, Tandon said diplomatic isolation was "not the right approach".
India shares a 1,643-km land border with Myanmar and has several major infrastructure projects involving the country, including the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project.
Officials confirmed that Myanmar would be represented at the Manila meetings by a Foreign Ministry official.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI)