With China on Mind, India, US and Japan to Hold Trilateral Meet in Washington

Meetings of any group of nations outside traditional global or regional forums like the G20 or ASEAN often raise eyebrows. Excluded nations either shrug or bristle over the new matchups. India, Japan and the US – the world’s top-ranking economies excluding China – will hold their first trilateral meeting, billed as the three leading Pacific democracies reviewing Asia Pacific regional issues. “Issues relating to maritime security, piracy and non-proliferation are expected to figure prominently in the dialogue, sources said,” reports the Times of India. “[T]he first meeting comes at a time when China is becoming increasingly assertive in East Asia and the US is seeking to ramp up its engagement with the Asia-Pacific region that includes some of the fast-growing economies in the world.” The official line of the three nations is that they are not ganging up or trying to contain China. – YaleGlobal