Via National Review:
When Mike Pompeo traveled to Tokyo to meet his counterparts from Japan, Australia, and India for talks this week, some observers speculated about the creation of an “Asian NATO” to counter China’s malign activity in the region.
That’s been one constant refrain about this four-country “Quad” in the lead up to the Tokyo meetings, but for now, this is all the Quad has been: a series of diplomatic encounters, not an organization with a headquarters or staff. Still, in the face of increased Chinese belligerence, this alignment of the region’s largest democracies, however loose it may seem, has gotten Beijing concerned about encirclement.
