QUAD officials meet in Sydney to discuss cyber security issues, says White House

Washington, Mar 25 (PTI) Quad – an informal grouping of Australia, India, Japan and the US – during a meeting of its senior officials this week in Sydney have agreed to collaborate on issues related to cyber security, the White House said Friday.

Australia, India, Japan and the US recognise the need for improving cybersecurity in an increasingly digital world with sophisticated cyber threats, said Emily Horne, spokesperson of the US National Security Council. Improvements are particularly important in delivering the essential services of life, health and livelihood that are provided by critical infrastructure, she said.

“This week the Quad Senior Cyber Group met in Sydney for two productive days of discussions on opportunities to extend our cyber security cooperation and uplift cyber resilience and critical infrastructure protection in our region,” Horne said. The group will report back to leaders through the established Quad processes, she said.

The meeting follows the decisions being taken by the leaders of the Quad countries in matters relating to cyber security. Their vision is to have a free, open and resilient Indo-Pacific. “This meeting resulted in a work plan to further collaboration between the members, and with partners and industry in the region to address our common challenges,” Horne said.

The next in-person summit meeting of QUAD leaders is scheduled to be held this fall in Japan. The first meeting was held in Washington DC last September.

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