Secretary of State Marco Rubio is meeting with his counterparts from Australia, India and Japan as the Trump administration kicks off its formal foreign policy engagements in discussions with the Indo-Pacific “Quad.

The meeting, bringing together representatives of the four largest militaries in the Indo-Pacific, was a clear signal that the Trump administration will intensify military preparations and threats directed at China.

WASHINGTON (Kyodo) -- The top diplomats of Japan and the United States agreed Tuesday to elevate the bilateral relationship to "new heights" on all fronts and continue working multilaterally with like-minded countries such as the Philippines and South Korea, just a day after Donald Trump returned to the White House for a nonconsecutive second term.

U.S. officials say the Trump administration would begin formal international engagements this week when Marco Rubio — expected to be confirmed soon as secretary of state — meets with the foreign ministers of India,

On his first full day as secretary of state, Marco Rubio is meeting with his counterparts from a group of countries known as the Quad: the United States plus India, Japan and Australia, representing nearly 2 billion people and more than a third of global GDP.

Rubio called China the "most potent, dangerous adversary" during his confirmation and is expected to work with India, Japan, and Australia to counter this.

The U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya addressed issues regarding North Korea's alignment with Russia and China's support for Russia's defense industry during their discussions,

Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a not-so-subtle warning to China over its actions at sea, vowing together with US allies to counter its assertiveness.

Analysts said meeting is designed to signal that countering Beijing is a top priority for Mr Trump. Read more at straitstimes.com.

After the Quad ministerial, Rubio had his first bilateral with Jaishankar, which lasted for more than an hour. India's Ambassador to the US, Vinay Kwatra, was also present in the meeting. Jaishankar also met National Security Advisor Mike Waltz on Tuesday.

"On behalf of the United States of America, I congratulate the people of India as they celebrate their nation's Republic Day. As they commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India, we join them in recognizing its enduring significance as the foundation of the world's largest democracy,

New U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed China's "dangerous and destabilizing actions in the South China Sea" with his Philippine counterpart on Wednesday and underscored the "ironclad" U.S.