Australia to host Quad leaders' summit on May 24

CANBERRA: Australia will host the Quad Leaders' Summit on May 24 in Sydney, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Twitter.

"I'm pleased to announce that Australia will be hosting the Quad Leaders' Summit for the first time on May 24 in Sydney,' Anthony Albanese tweeted.

Prime Minister Modi will be travelling to Australia in May to take part in the Quad leadership summit. The announcement was made during the joint press conference hosted by Prime Minister Modi along with Australian counterpart in March when the latter was on a four-day visit to India.

"India and Australia are both members of the Quad. I thank PM Albanese for inviting me to Australia for the Quad Leaders' Summit in May. I have invited him to India for the G20 summit in September," PM Modi had said.

The leaders of the Quad group have met on four occasions earlier and their next meeting will be held in Australia. The group's importance in the region has increased due to its keen interest in sustainable and inclusive economic growth and increasing people-to-people connections between Quad members and non-Quad members.

Prime Minister Modi, on several occasions, has highlighted that the Quad is a force of global good and is aimed at developing the region while protecting the interests of all members of the Indo-Pacific region.

The Quad is a strategic forum comprising India, Japan, the US, and Australia. Its primary objective is to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence.