NEW DELHI: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday refuted China’s statement referring to Quad as a grouping created to counter China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region.
Morrison said in an online briefing with Indian journalists that the bloc’s objective was to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific and welcomed China to be a partner in the endeavour.
“Everybody who wants to participate in that, including China, is a welcome partner in that cause. We don’t really want to see the region in such binary terms. That’s not how the Quad is approaching the challenges that we see in the region,” he said.
“Of course, we want to deter any type of behaviour that threatens peace and security in the region, that threatens the development and prosperity of countries in the region, or in any way seeks to limit their sovereignty or their access to the freedoms that exist under international law,” Morrison said.
“It is certainly that from Australia’s perspective and I would be so bold to assume that this would be India’s view, too. We are not seeking in any way to constrain China’s growth,” the Australian Prime Minister added.
He said all the countries in the region did not have the same political systems and outlooks. “We have a very multilateral view of the Indo-Pacific, not a binary one.” On AUKUS (Australia-UK -US), Morrison said it would complement partnerships like the Quad and added that there was a “very warm embrace” of the deal by India and Japan, which totally understood and supported what it sought to achieve.