Washington: The United States announced that it had taken the first group of 100 students, 25 from each QUAD country, including India under its QUAD Fellowship.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, in a statement, congratulated the first cohort of Quad Fellows from Australia, India, Japan, and the United State and said that together bring the Quad members closer.

"Today we are proud to welcome a group of 100 diverse, interdisciplinary, inspiring, and exceptional students - 25 from each Quad country - who are the next generation of great STEM minds. Each of them has demonstrated its commitment to advancing innovation and collaboration among our four great democracies and an enthusiasm for building a better tomorrow for the Indo-Pacific and the world," Sullivan said.

At the second in-person Quad Leaders' Summit this past May, US President Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida officially opened this Fellowship.

"Each of them demonstrated their commitment to advancing innovation and collaboration among our four great democracies and an enthusiasm for building a better tomorrow for the Indo-Pacific and the world. Under President Biden, the Quad partnership has been elevated to unprecedented heights and it will only grow in the coming years," Sullivan added.

"We are confident our future is in good hands," the NSA said.

The last Quad Summit took place in May in Tokyo. This is the fourth interaction of Quad Leaders since their first virtual meeting in March 2021, in-person Summit in Washington DC in September 2021 and virtual meeting in March 2022.

The leaders will review the progress of Quad initiatives and Working Groups, identify new areas of cooperation and provide strategic guidance and vision for future collaboration.

At the Quad Summit, PM Modi highlighted India's consistent and principled position on the need for cessation of hostilities, resumption of dialogue and diplomacy.

PM Modi, along with the leaders of the Quad nations, took part in the fourth interaction of the leaders, which saw criticism of Russian military action in Ukraine, from Australia, Japan and the United States.

During the summit, the leaders reiterated their shared commitment to a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific and the importance of upholding the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and peaceful resolution of disputes.

They exchanged perspectives on developments in the Indo-Pacific and the conflict in Europe.