Washington, DC, September 19
US President Joe Biden is looking forward to bringing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese PM Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to his hometown, Delaware, for the Quad Summit set to be held on September 21, White House said on Wednesday (local time).
Notably, the mega summit also marks Biden's last Quad summit of his term ahead of the presidential elections in the US.
While addressing a press briefing on Wednesday (local time), White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre recalled how Biden used to visit Delaware every weekend when he served as Senator to raise his sons.
When asked whether Biden considered hosting the world leader in Delaware previously or in his second term, Jean-Pierre said, "It is indeed, Wilmington, Delaware, his home, it is a place that he talks about often, as you stated that you know he went back every weekend, as you know every day, as you know when he was a Senator raising his boys, and so you know this is what you see from this President when he goes to Wilmington, and I think, look, I'm not going to go into what the President was thinking before he decided to not run for re-election."
"I'm not going to go into that; what I'm going to go into is that he thinks it's important in the relationship that he has built with these leaders to bring them to his hometown, and again, you know, not just politics but domestic policy, foreign policy as well as how it relates to the American people is indeed very local, and so he's looking forward to bringing them to his hometown. I think they will enjoy Wilmington as much as you all do when you go to Wilmington with the President," she added.
She also said that US President Joe Biden has developed a relationship with these leaders over the past three and a half years. She stated that Biden wanted to continue on that diplomacy by bringing the Quad leaders to Wilmington and termed it important to show how the relationship has grown.
On being asked how the world should read that the Quad Summit is being held in Wilmington, Karine Jean-Pierre said, "Look, I think that what people should look at this as politics, whether it's foreign or domestic, is indeed personal. It is very much local, it is very much personal, and if you think about this, the president has developed over three and a half years and more, president has developed a relationship with these leaders, and so he wanted to continue on that diplomacy if you will by bringing them to Wilmington and I think it's important I think it's important show of how those relationship has grown. It's important to show how much the president really focuses on foreign policy and I think that's what you should see from that it's politics not just domestic but also foreign policy is very much local and I think that's what you're going to see from this President."
US President Joe Biden is set to host the fourth in-person Quad Leaders summit in Delaware on September 21. The summit will focus on bolstering strategic convergence among our countries, advancing a shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
In a statement on September 12, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, "President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. will host the fourth in-person Quad Leaders Summit in Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday, September 21. The President looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan."
"This will be President Biden's first time hosting foreign leaders in Wilmington as president--a reflection of his deep personal relationships with each of the Quad Leaders, and the importance of the Quad to all of our countries," she added.
Quad is a diplomatic partnership between four countries--Australia, India, Japan, and the United States. It is pertinent to note that in recent years, Quad Foreign Ministers have met eight times, and Quad governments continue to meet and coordinate at all levels.
"The Biden-Harris Administration has made elevating and institutionalising the Quad a top priority, from the first-ever Quad Leaders Summit at the White House in 2021 to annual summits since then," Jean-Pierre said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the United States from September 21 to 23, during which he will take part in the Quad Summit and address the 'Summit of the Future' at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
"The Quad Leaders Summit will focus on bolstering the strategic convergence among our countries, advancing our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region, and delivering concrete benefits for partners in the Indo-Pacific in key areas," Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
"These include health security, natural disaster response, maritime security, high-quality infrastructure, critical and emerging technology, climate and clean energy, and cybersecurity," she added.
Following the request of the US side to host the Quad Summit this year, India has agreed to host the next Quad Summit in 2025.