중국 견제 속도 내는 쿼드…내달 美•印•日훈련에 호주 가세
Eyeing China,... the Quad group - consisting of the U.S., Japan, India and Australia - plans to conduct joint military drills off the coast of India in November.
This will mark the first drill to include Australia since 2007.
Kim Hyo-sun tells us more.
The Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, will be carrying out a large-scale military exercise next month, in a show of force against China.
According to Reuters,... the Indian Ministry of Defense says naval drills will take place in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal,... which have been at the center of Indo-Chinese strategic competition.
It also added that for the first time since 2007, the joint drills - originally involving India, Japan and the U.S. - will invite Australia.
Australia had previously participated in the joint exercise, but withdrew from it in 2007, following Beijing's opposition.
But, the Australian Defense Minister explained this time that the drills are about demonstrating the collective resolve of the four countries to support an open and prosperous Indo-Pacific.
This comes as Washington calls for the need to formalize the Quad group into a NATO-like joint structure for security in the region.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun explained Tuesday during a tele-conference that the group should become more regularized and be formalized at some point in future.
However, he remained clear that it is premature to talk about the issue of expanding the group now.
Kim Hyo-sun, Arirang News.
