U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Tokyo this week for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or "Quad," with Japan, India and Australia is an important step in creating an institution that will bring critical public goods to the Indo-Pacific to accelerate its development, promote stability and be characterized by a rules-based order in which states in the region agree on a common set of rules.
For that to occur, the Quad first needs to keep the United States engaged in the region in a comprehensive manner. This needs to include economic, diplomatic, and security commitments. Second, the Quad needs to be an instrument that allows the U.S. to constructively engage in the region. Third, the Quad needs to be an instrument that inculcates multipolarity into the Indo-Pacific to ensure that region does not evolve into to a unipolar Indo-Pacific region.
These will be critical to ensure the region does not evolve according to the deepening U.S.-China strategic competition.