On September 21 (local time), the Quad, a security dialogue group consisting of the United States, Japan, Australia, and India, held a summit in the United States and condemned North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and recent ballistic missile launches as military provocations.
During the meeting, the leaders of the four countries expressed serious concerns about North Korea’s illicit acquisition of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missile programs, as well as its nuclear proliferation networks, malicious cyber activities, and reliance on overseas workers. They also expressed deep concerns about countries that are intensifying military cooperation with North Korea, directly undermining the global non-proliferation regime.
On that day, US President Joe Biden, joined by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, held a summit in Wilmington, Delaware, where they adopted the “Wilmington Joint Statement of the United States, Japan, Australia, and India.”
In the statement, they urged North Korea to comply with all obligations under United Nations Security Council resolutions, refrain from further provocations, and engage in substantive dialogue. They also called on all UN member states to abide by relevant Security Council resolutions, including the prohibition on transferring any weapons or related materials to or from North Korea.