The United States is looking to breathe fresh life into the Quad partnership with India, Japan and Australia, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirming that the grouping's first leaders' summit in more than two years is expected to take place next month during ASEAN-related meetings in Manila, ANI reported on Thursday, citing US media reports.

Source: ANI via LatestLY

Rubio told an Indian news network that an agreement had been reached to hold the summit during the Manila meetings, although a specific date had not yet been finalised. "We don't have the specific date yet, but that's going to happen, and we're very enthusiastic about it," Rubio said, according to ANI.

4Quad member countries — US, India, Japan, Australia
Sep 2024last Quad leaders' summit, in Wilmington, US
2007year the Quad was conceived by Japan's Shinzo Abe

The South China Morning Post, reporting Rubio's interview with CNN-News18 on Tuesday, said the Philippines chairs ASEAN this year and will host the leaders' summit and other multilateral meetings in Manila in November. India was due to host the Quad leaders' summit in 2025, but the meeting was repeatedly delayed as relations between New Delhi and Washington deteriorated over US tariffs, oil sanctions and visa restrictions, the SCMP reported. Australia is the rotating chair for this year.

The proposed summit would be the first Quad leaders' meeting since September 2024, when Joe Biden was US President, ANI reported. Rubio met his counterparts from the three partner countries a day after President Donald Trump's inauguration and has since taken part in two further Quad foreign ministers' meetings, the latest in July. Trump has yet to participate in a Quad leaders' meeting during his current presidency, raising concerns among officials in Tokyo, Canberra and New Delhi about the grouping's direction, ANI added.

Rubio said the leaders are expected to announce concrete actions on critical minerals, emerging technologies, maritime security and energy security, NewKerala reported, citing the same interview.

Why it matters

The Quad is widely seen as a mechanism to counter China's influence in the Indo-Pacific, the SCMP noted. For India, a revived leaders' summit puts New Delhi back at the top table of Indo-Pacific security and economic planning after a year in which the summit slipped amid trade and visa tensions with Washington.

What is solid

  • Rubio confirmed an agreement to hold a Quad leaders' summit in Manila next month during ASEAN-related meetings (ANI; SCMP)
  • No specific date has been finalised yet, Rubio said
  • The last Quad leaders' summit was in September 2024 in Wilmington, and Trump has not yet attended one in his current presidency (ANI)

What is only claimed

  • The exact date and final arrangements — reports differ on the ASEAN meeting dates and the summit's specific day is still unconfirmed
  • Whether the summit will reset US-India ties — the 2025 summit slipped amid tariff, oil-sanctions and visa tensions, and the outcome in Manila is not yet known

(Sources: ANI reporting via LatestLY and Devdiscourse, 22 October 2026; South China Morning Post reporting via Indo-Pacific Affairs, 21-22 October 2026; NewKerala, 22 October 2026.)