Quad makes it clear to China it’s much more than ‘sea foam’

China remains the invisible elephant in the room, often alluded to but not explicitly mentioned by name. It is instructive that the only references to “China” in the lengthy joint statement were by way of the East and South China Seas.

However, the most substantive takeaway from the summit came from an unintended moment. In an audio feed not meant for public consumption, Biden was overheard telling the other leaders that President Xi Jinping was “looking to buy himself some diplomatic space, in my view, to aggressively pursue China’s interest”. He added that China “continues to behave aggressively, testing us all across the region” on several fronts, “including on economic and technology issues”.