China hopes Quad is not aimed at it

Skirting any direct response to the first quadrilateral meeting of India, US, Japan and Australia, China on Monday questioned its exclusion from the group and expressed hope that the new concept of 'Indo-Pacific' is not directed against it.

"The relevant proposals should be open and inclusive and should be conducive to win-win cooperation and avoid politicising or excluding the relevant parties," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a media briefing here. He was answering a spate of questions on the Indo-Pacific concept and the quadrilateral meeting held on Sunday at Manila.

Asked whether he meant "exclusion of the relevant parties" referred to omission of China, Geng said China welcomes the development of friendly cooperation between relevant countries. "We hope this kind of relations will not be directed at a third party and conducive to the regional peace and stability. This is the general concept and I think this kind of position applies to any proposal," he said.

The move is seen as counter to China's aggressive behaviour in the area.