NEW DELHI: US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said that leaders of the United States, India, Australia and Japan did discuss the 'challenge' posed by China during the first meeting of the Quad that was held yesterday.

Known as the 'Quadrilateral Security Dialogue,' the Quad is an informal strategic dialogue between the grouping of the four countries that is maintained by talks between member countries. It was initiated in 2007 by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, with the support of Vice President Dick Cheney of the US, Prime Minister John Howard of Australia and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India.

On 12 March, the first summit meeting was held virtually, attended by US President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. Sullivan said that during the meeting, the four leaders addressed key regional issues, including freedom of navigation and freedom from coercion in the South and East China Seas, the North Korea nuclear issue, and the coup and violent repression in Myanmar.

Sullivan added that the leaders made clear that none of them have any 'illusions' about Beijing, although today was not fundamentally about China.  He also said that the four leaders also discussed both the recent cyber-attacks and semiconductors in the course of their conversation.

Sullivan, who along with the Secretary of State Antony Blinken are scheduled to meet their Chinese counterparts Yang Jiechi, a member of the Politburo of the ruling Communist Party of China and State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Anchorage, Alaska on March 18-19.