The 11th Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting, hosted in New Delhi on Tuesday, delivered an operationally detailed maritime agenda. It launched a brand-new surveillance initiative, upgraded an existing domain awareness programme, committed to the grouping's first physical infrastructure project in the Pacific, and hardened the region's undersea digital backbone. When read together, these appear to be a coordinated maritime architecture that India sits at the centre of.
The centrepiece surveillance initiative is the Indo-Pacific Maritime Surveillance Collaboration (IPMSC), a first-ever effort to coordinate the maritime surveillance capabilities of all four Quad nations.
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Its initial focus is the Indian Ocean Region, and it will operate through subject matter expert exchanges and tabletop exercises. The IPMSC does not replace the existing Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA), but adds to it.
Under the IPMDA expansion, the four countries are now building a comprehensive Common Operational Picture (COP) across the Indo-Pacific, drawing on real-time vessel tracking information.
The Joint Statement released by the MEA noted that India has already operationalised the Indian Ocean Region programme of the IPMDA through its Information Fusion Centre in Gurugram, making India the operational hub of this effort.
The Quad also confirmed that India will host the next edition of the Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission, which strengthens interoperability among the four navies to address unlawful maritime activities. The first such mission, from Palau to Guam, was completed in July 2025.
On port infrastructure, the Quad announced that its four members will work with the Government of Fiji to advance port infrastructure and associated activities in the country, the grouping's first-ever joint infrastructure project. This follows the Quad Ports of the Future Partnership Conference hosted by India in October 2025. According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Fiji port initiative is a response to insufficient port capacity in the Pacific Islands.
The other focus is on undersea cables. The Quad meeting acknowledged that undersea cable networks face increased risks, including threats of sabotage, and confirmed that Quad partners have already provided tangible support to ensure all Pacific Island Forum countries are connected via undersea cables by 2026. Cooperation on undersea cables will continue under the Quad Partnership for Cable Connectivity and Resilience, which held a Wavelength Forum in New Delhi in July 2025.
The Joint Statement, however, expressed serious concern over dangerous and coercive actions in the South China Sea, including the use of water cannons and flares, and ramming or blocking actions, and called for all maritime disputes to be resolved in accordance with UNCLOS. It also condemned attacks on commercial shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, and opposed any tolls or restrictions inconsistent with UNCLOS.