Quad Leaders’ Summit to take place in Manila next month, says US Secy of State Marco Rubio

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the next Quad Leaders’ Meeting will take place in Manila next month.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced that the next Quad Leaders’ Summit will be held in Manila, the Philippines, next month, bringing together the leaders of India, the United States, Japan and Australia at a crucial moment for the Indo-Pacific region.

The leaders of India, the United States, Japan and Australia will meet in Manila next month, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced. (Bloomberg)

Speaking about the proposed gathering, Rubio said, "...We'll be announcing very soon, if we haven't already, that we'll be holding a Quad Leaders' Meeting in Manila next month..."

The announcement comes amid intensified diplomatic engagement among the four Quad members, with the proposed summit expected to take place on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meetings in November.

Quad foreign ministers meeting in Atlanta

The Atlanta meeting marked the third gathering of Quad foreign ministers this year, following earlier meetings in New Delhi in May and Manila in July. The ministers discussed strengthening cooperation in critical areas, including reliable supply chains, emerging technologies, maritime security and critical minerals.

Last QUAD Leaders’ Summit held in 2024

The proposed Manila summit will be particularly significant as it would mark the first meeting of Quad leaders since September 2024, when the last summit was hosted by then US President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware.

India was expected to host the next summit in 2025, but the meeting did not materialise amid scheduling difficulties and uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump's proposed visit to India.

The upcoming gathering is therefore being viewed as an important opportunity to revive momentum at the highest political level within the four-country grouping.