United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on his first full day in office on Tuesday, warned jointly with Japan, India and Australia against coercive moves in Asia, in a veiled but clear warning to China over its maritime actions.

Rubio called China the "most potent, dangerous adversary" during his confirmation and is expected to work with India, Japan, and Australia to counter this.

Following his debut at the State Department, Rubio met in the afternoon with foreign ministers from the Indo-Pacific Quad on Tuesday afternoon, including Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi.

The first Quad ministerial meeting of Australia, India, Japan and the US since President Donald Trump took office was held on Tuesday.

China on Wednesday said its activities and claims over the South China Sea are legitimate and “completely justified”, reacting to the Quad Foreign Ministers’ assertions “strongly” opposing any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion in the Indo Pacific region.

The U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted a crucial meeting with foreign ministers from Australia, India, and Japan, emphasizing the importance of allied cooperation amid China's rise. The meeting aims to signal a strategic focus on countering Beijing's influence in the Indo-Pacific,

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reaffirmed Washington's commitment to Manila and condemned Beijing for its "dangerous and destabilising" actions in the Sea, in his first phone call with Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to host a meeting of the Quad nations. The meeting aims to signal opposition to China's influence in the Indo-Pacific and hints at an early Quad summit in Trump's presidency.

Analysts have said the meeting is designed to signal that countering Beijing is a top priority for Mr Trump. Read more at straitstimes.com.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier said he said would stress the importance of working with allies 'on the things that are important to America and Americans' during the meeting

Today’s joint statement from the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting in Washington is short and sweet, particularly for those who have been arguing that the grouping should overtly embrace security cooperation.

After the hour-long meeting, the four ministers reconfirmed the Quad Leadership Summit in India later this year