head of Vietnam s ASEAN SOM and Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The 33rd ASEAN-Australia
Forum took place via videoconference on March 17, during which Deputy Secretary
of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Justin Hayhurst reiterated
the nation’s commitment to increasing cooperation with the bloc.
At the forum, Australia informed about the implementation of
a 500 million AUD investment package announced by the Australian Prime Minister
on the occasion of the ASEAN-Australia Summit in November last year to support a
comprehensive recovery in the region. Also mentioned were its funding of 1
million AUD to the bloc’s Comprehensive Recovery Framework, 1 million AUD to
1546 The Quad is also discussing joint disaster relief exercises and coordination in the distribution of Covid vaccines. File Photo
Sandeep Dikshit
New Delhi, December 19
Senior officials from the Quad countries have discussed practical ways to cooperate on countering disinformation, an area that is part of a renewed focus by the NATO as well.
Read-outs from foreign offices of the four participating countries suggest that discussions covered a wider range of topics such as critical minerals, the Mekong countries, North Korea and East China Sea. The Quad is also discussing joint disaster relief exercises and coordination in the distribution of Covid vaccines.
Sandeep Dikshit
New Delhi, December 19
Senior officials from the Quad countries have discussed practical ways to cooperate on countering disinformation, an area that is part of a renewed focus by the NATO as well.
The read-outs from foreign offices of the four participating countries suggested that discussions have started to cover a wider range of topics to ensure a “free and open Indo-Pacific”.
These include critical minerals, the Mekong countries, North Korea and the East China Sea. The Quad is also discussing joint disaster relief exercises and coordination in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
During their virtual meeting on Friday, diplomats from India, the US, Australia and Japan who call themselves the Quad also talked about strengthening supply chain resiliency and to coordinate efforts to support countries “vulnerable to malign and coercive economic actions” in the Indo-Pacific region, said a US State Department readout of the interaction.