Canberra: The Quad leaders convened a virtual meeting on Wednesday and discussed the ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and assessed its broader implications.

Quad Leaders - Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, and President Joe Biden of the United States reaffirmed their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, in which the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states is respected and countries are free from military, economic, and political coercion, read the joint statement.

They reaffirmed their dedication to the Quad as a mechanism to promote regional stability and prosperity.

The Quad Leaders agreed to stand up new humanitarian assistance and disaster relief mechanism which will enable the Quad to meet future humanitarian challenges in the Indo-Pacific and provide a channel for communication as they each address and respond to the crisis in Ukraine, added the statement.

In their continuing pursuit of a free and open Indo-Pacific, the Quad Leaders agreed to meet in person in Tokyo in the coming months.

This was the first meeting since the leaders of four Quad countries held a summit in September last year in Washington.

This meeting virtual meeting was held amid Russia's military action in Ukraine that has led to a refugee crisis in European countries.

Since the start of the Russian "special military operation" last week, several western countries including the US, Canada and Australia, have imposed crippling sanctions on Russia.

India has called for immediate de-escalation and advocated the path of diplomacy.