Ahead of Quad meeting, Jaishankar speaks to Australia counterpart Wong

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday held a phone conversation with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong ahead of a key meeting of the Quad in Washington DC next week.

Jaishankar, Wong, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will hold wide-ranging talks as part of the preparations for the Quad summit that is expected to be held in India in November.

"A good discussion this morning with FM @SenatorWong of Australia before we head out for the Quad next week," Jaishankar said in a social media post.

"Exchanged views on our bilateral cooperation and the Indo-Pacific," he said.

The Quad, comprising India, the US, Australia and Japan, has emerged as a key grouping largely focusing on peace, security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Quad foreign ministers' meeting in Washington DC is likely to broadly deliberate on the agenda for the annual summit of the grouping.

The summit is expected to deliberate on specific steps to bolster cooperation in the maritime domain.

Separately, Jaishankar also held a phone conversation with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

Al Thani is also Qatar's foreign minister.

"A warm call with PM & FM @MBA_AlThani_ of Qatar. Appreciated his assessment of the regional situation. Discussed our bilateral agenda," Jaishankar said on X.