When foreign ministers of countries that are part of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) gathered in New Delhi last week, the agenda looked familiar: supply chain resilience, telecommunications security and maritime domain awareness. The talking points have evolved, the initiatives have multiplied and the meetings have become routine. Asia is entering a new strategic era.

A proposal by the Quad to build a port in Fiji, seen by analysts as a move to counter China’s rising economic clout in the Pacific region, has fuelled doubts about whether the four-member security bloc is committed to completing the project amid differing policy priorities. At a meeting of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad, in New Delhi last week, the foreign ministers of Australia, India, Japan and the United States – Penny Wong, S. Jaishankar, Toshimitsu Motegi and US Secretary of...