The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) and AUKUS have yet again unveiled a flawed strategy for influence in the Pacific. Both security alliances are ambitious and are planning to invest more in aggressive capabilities.
Secondly, the Western powers are engaging these Asia Pacific countries in direct military-to-military engagement. For instance, the recent Exercise Balikatan 2026 took place from April to May 2026 and involved countries like Canada, Australia, Japan, France, New Zealand, and the Philippines, including the US. The main purpose of these exercises is to drag these Pacific nations into an unnecessary military confrontation, most probably against China and Russia.
Recent Developments
Quite recently, two important developments have taken place. First, on May 26, 2026, the foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue members met in New Delhi to mark the 11th edition of the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. The Quad members have decided to establish the Indo-Pacific Maritime Surveillance Collaboration (IPMSC) as well as the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA). Most importantly, the Quad has decided to launch the Quad Critical Minerals Initiative Framework and the Indo-Pacific Energy Security to help strengthen regional energy resilience. The Quad has also decided to establish a seaport in Fiji to help facilitate the flow of critical minerals.
Secondly, on May 29, 2026, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (AUKUS) used their alliance known as AUKUS to announce that they were planning to build an advanced uncrewed underwater vehicle (UUV). The announcement was made at a very significant time during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Mr. Richard Marles MP, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Pete Hegseth, U.S. Secretary of War, and John Healey MP, UK Secretary of State for Defence, met at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore. The UK has decided to invest a little more than 200 million USD in the project and the investments by Australia and the US are still not made public.
Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad)
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad, is an alliance of four countries, including Australia, Japan, the United States, and India. It was formed in 2007, but it was given a new life in 2017. Australia, Japan, and India are rapidly aligning themselves with that of the US, and these countries have signed multiple bilateral defence agreements with the US. For instance, the US 7th fleet is positioned at the naval port of Yokosuka in Japan and is constantly harassing and threatening the Russian naval fleet at Vladivostok. Likewise, India was given a dominating role in the US Indo-Pacific Strategy, and both nations signed strategic agreements like the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA), Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA), and the Communications, Compatibility, and Security Agreement (COMCASA).
Australia, United Kingdom, and United States (AUKUS)
The AUKUS is an ambitious plan to arm Australia with nuclear-powered submarines, which it really does not need. Australia has no nuclear plants to fuel its future nuclear submarines, and it will be completely dependent on the US and UK to provide it with nuclear fuel. With their recent ambition to make advanced underwater vehicles, AUKUS will be spending a little more than half a billion USD, and the US military industrial complex will be the biggest beneficiary of such an initiative.
Conclusion
The Quad and AUKUS are the two main tools of Western imperialism and their desire to drag nations into military and arms races that have nothing to do with such ambitions. For instance, the Quad members, Japan and India, have a pacifist foreign policy, and these nations do not have any aim to become a military bulwark against any nation. Similarly, AUKUS member Australia has no foreign policy objective of becoming a highly militarized nation armed with nuclear submarines.
Apparently, the Western powers have successfully dragged these nations into military alliances like the Quad and AUKUS. Now, the US and its allies will pressure Fiji to allow them to make a military base there in the name of the facilitation of critical minerals and rare earths. With this, the bilateral relations of Fiji with other countries could deteriorate rapidly. How could sovereign and open-minded countries like Russia, North Korea, and China allow a Western military outpost in the Pacific?
The world should take notice of these unnecessary developments in the Pacific led by the US and its allies. It appears that after the setbacks in Iran and the unfavorable situation for the Ukrainian army, despite massive Western assistance, Washington has decided to turn its attention to the Pacific region.
Simon Westwood is a Masters student at Dublin City University (DCU), Ireland. He is also a research assistant at DCU’s Department of History
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