By Robert Mizo
Jul 17 2025 – On 1 July, the foreign ministers of the Quad—Australia, India, Japan and the US—convened for the second time this year in Washington, DC. While the first meeting, held just hours after the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States, signaled the Quad’s significance to the new US administration, the second meeting indicates that the Quad is entering a new phase with a renewed focus on a strategic and hard security agenda, weaning itself away from its non-traditional security priorities. This presents a departure from its previous versions: the first Quad, which collapsed in 2007, centred on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), and Quad 2.0, which was reinstated in 2017, gradually developed a broad public goods agenda.

The joint statement issued by the Quad foreign ministers after their January 2025 meeting in DC was unusually circumscribed. The group reaffirmed their “shared commitment to strengthening a Free and Open Indo-Pacific where the rule of law, democratic values, sovereignty, and territorial integrity are upheld and defended.” Without explicitly naming China, as usual, the ministers registered their strong opposition to “any unilateral actions” that might seek to alter “the status quo by force or coercion” in the Indo-Pacific region. China responded to this cautioning through its Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, saying, “China’s activities in relevant waters are lawful, legitimate and completely justified.”

In their 1 July joint statement, the Quad foreign ministers reiterated their collective opposition to any unilateral actions seeking to upend the regional “status-quo by force or coercion”—a phrase they used more than once in the statement. While reaffirming their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, the group underscored their “commitment to defending the rule of law, sovereignty, and territorial integrity” of the region. They underlined how the maritime domain underpins the security and prosperity of the region, implying that the Quad views any unilateral exertions in the maritime domain, particularly by China, with stern caution.

Even though the July statement still does not mention China, it stressed ‘concerns’ over the situation in the East and South China Seas. Some of the Quad’s concerns pertaining to the region listed are:

The interference with offshore resource development, the repeated obstruction of the freedoms of navigation and overflight, and the dangerous maneuvers by military aircraft and coast guard and maritime militia vessels, especially the unsafe use of water cannons and ramming or blocking actions in the South China Sea… We are seriously concerned about the militarization of disputed features.

The Quad sees these actions as ‘dangerous and provocative’ and threatens ‘peace and stability in the region’. In effect, China’s perceived belligerence and excesses in the South and East China Seas make up a bulk of the concerns for the Quad.

Further, the foreign ministers condemned North Korea’s destabilizing ballistic missile launches, its continued pursuit of nuclear weapons, and its malicious cyber activity, including cryptocurrency theft. The ministers called upon all UN Member States to uphold and implement the UNSC sanctions against North Korea to prohibit the transfer of arms and related material. In yet another veiled reference to China and Russia, the Quad expressed “deep concern about countries that are deepening military cooperation with North Korea, which directly undermines the global nonproliferation regime.”

The Quad ministers’ meeting reiterated cooperative measures to enhance maritime and regional security, promote economic prosperity and security, and critical and emerging technology and supply chains. They launched the Quad Critical Minerals Initiative to secure and diversify critical minerals supply chains. This is in response to their growing concerns over “the abrupt constriction and future reliability of key supply chains, specifically for critical minerals,” primarily due to China’s growing dominance in the region. The Quad insists that a diversified and reliable global supply chain is imperative to avoid potential coercion and monopoly of price by ‘one country’. China is yet to issue an official response to these remarks (at the time of this writing) but one can imagine these indictments will have very little curtailing effect on its military and ‘civilian’ activities in the region.

Additionally, the Quad expressed its continued efforts to strengthen maritime law enforcement collaboration through training, legal dialogues, and Coast Guard cooperation. This should also be read as a countermeasure to China’s belligerence in the Indo-Pacific waters, as the Quad holds freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses of the sea as critical. They also reiterated as ‘significant’ the 2016 ruling of the Arbitral Tribunal, which dismissed China’s ‘historic rights’ claims in the South China Sea as invalid, holding it as the basis for resolving the conflict peacefully.

In addition to these hard security and strategic goals, the Quad foreign ministers did reiterate their keenness to advance humanitarian assistance and emergency response capabilities across the Indo-Pacific. They collectively raised over USD 30 million in humanitarian assistance for victims of the Myanmar earthquake in March 2025. They announced the first field training exercise under the Quad Indo-Pacific Logistics Network and confirmed the launch of the Quad Ports of the Future Partnership later this year. This shows that the Quad continues to have the element of public goods on its agenda.

However, the non-security agenda of the Quad is significantly narrowing. One glaring omission is any mention of its climate-related initiatives. The group instituted the Quad Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Package (Q-CHAMP) in 2022, containing a critical measures to mitigate and address the challenges emerging from climate change in the region. Initiatives in the package include the Climate and Information Service Taskforce, the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), and the Quad Shipping Taskforce. It emphasized knowledge sharing to promote clean and renewable energies such as hydrogen and ammonia, methane reduction, Carbon Capturing, Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS), and Carbon Recycling. These measures were intended to assist partners in the region, including vulnerable Island States, in coping with the vagaries of the climate crisis, which is their biggest existential security challenge. It remains unclear if these missions will continue, or if the Quad’s Climate Working Group will remain functional.

It is evident that the Quad, in its new incarnation under the second Trump Administration, seeks to prioritize hard security issues. The few enduring non-traditional security efforts are also moved by strategic calculations. Some Quad watchers may see this as an encouraging development. However, it is vital to bear in mind that the group is hardly monolithic and may not successfully muster the collective political will to tame the strategic turmoil in the region, particularly those arising from China’s power excursions. India’s reluctance to engage in any direct confrontation with China, Japan’s and Australia’s economic dependence on China, and even the highly unpredictable current US foreign policy account for this uncertainty.

The Quad cannot securitize itself to the point that it becomes unable to operate or realize its original goal of securing a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific. It must strive to find a balance between its emerging realpolitik rhetoric and the allocation of public goods, which includes addressing the pressing needs of the most vulnerable people in the region. While it remains to be seen how the Quad evolves under the new US administration, it is of interest to see if (and how) the other three partners can keep alive the pursuit of public goods they had previously championed.

Related articles:
The Quad’s deepening maritime cooperation
The Quad, maritime security and climate change

Robert Mizo is an Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Delhi, India. He holds a PhD in Climate Policy studies. His research interests include Climate Change and Security, Climate Politics, Environmental Security, and International Environmental Politics. He has published and presented on the above topics at both national and international platforms. Robert has recently been a Japan Foundation Indo-Pacific Partnership (JFIPP) Research Fellow based at the Toda Peace Institute, Tokyo.

This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished from the original with their permission.

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By Tanatcha Supsin-amnuay, Madan B. Regmi and Yossapong Laoonual
BANGKOK, Thailand, Jul 17 2025 – Thailand’s transport sector is a significant contributor to national greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for 18.4 per cent of the country’s total emissions. Bangkok is at the centre of this challenge. With more registered vehicles than residents, the resulting traffic congestion worsens air pollution and strains the city’s roads and overall mobility infrastructure.

While investments in mass transit, such as the Bangkok Mass Transit System (BTS) Skytrain, Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) subway, Airport Rail Link commuter line and public bus services are expanding, the city’s informal on-demand transport remains critical to its mobility ecosystem.

Motorcycle taxis and tuk-tuks continue to provide essential first- and last-mile connectivity, particularly in areas underserved by fixed-route systems. By strategically integrating both formal and informal transport solutions into its urban planning, Bangkok can turn its diverse mobility landscape into a powerful driver of low-carbon development.

Electrifying Bangkok’s Informal Mobility Sector

A fleet of more than 8,000 registered tuk-tuks and 63,000 motorcycle taxis forms a vast on-demand network that weaves through Bangkok’s narrow streets. The key opportunity lies not in replacing this system, but in electrifying it as part of a more sustainable city vision.

Innovation is generating new alternatives within this evolving transport ecosystem. A notable example is the ride-hailing service MuvMi, which uses electric tuk-tuks and a mobile app for booking shared rides, making trips more affordable. Since its launch in 2017, MuvMi has successfully reduced over 1,700 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent, showcasing how private sector solutions can deliver both climate and mobility benefits.

Electric Tuk Tuk in Bangkok. Credit: Karnplu Burintrarat

Another innovative electric motorcycle rental platform featuring a 24/7 battery swapping system is Winnonie. The service is primarily targeted at motorcycle taxi drivers and delivery riders, offering a cost-effective and practical alternative to gasoline-powered motorcycles. Users can rent electric motorcycles on a daily basis and reserve batteries via a mobile app without the need for down payments or long-term commitments. This model lowers operating costs compared to conventional motorcycles while supporting cleaner urban transport.

In contrast, the electrification of the city’s thousands of traditional tuk-tuks faces a more complex reality. These vehicles, often rented by their drivers and heavily reliant on tourism, operate under a different economic model. The high upfront cost of a new electric tuk-tuk is a major barrier for both fleet owners and individual drivers, with no clear financial incentive to upgrade.

The limited number of electric tuk-tuk manufacturers and dealerships makes vehicle owners hesitant to convert due to concerns about reliability and after-sales support. As a result, this iconic fleet risks being left behind in the city’s green transition.

Motorcycle taxis also face a complex set of challenges. For these essential last-mile providers, key barriers include high upfront costs and limited access to affordable financing. The lack of standardisation across battery-swapping systems restricts interoperability, limiting drivers’ ability to switch providers and reducing overall system efficiency. Unless these issues of cost, convenience, and interoperability are addressed through enabling policies, electrification of this fleet will remain constrained.

Scaling Up Electric Buses in Public Transit

On a broader scale, Bangkok is taking steps towards a long-term shift to electric public transport. A key catalyst is the Bangkok E-Bus Programme, which will deploy 1,913 electric buses along 122 routes, enabled by a climate finance partnership under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Through this arrangement, the Swiss-based KliK Foundation purchases internationally recognized carbon credits from the Thai programme owner. Revenue from these sales improves the financial viability of large-scale electric bus procurements. The programme’s climate impact is significant, with an expected cumulative reduction of 500,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent between 2021 and 2030.

The Thai government is also launching a plan to transition its public bus fleet. The state-run Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) will replace its vehicles in phases between 2025 and 2032, leasing 1,520 electric buses as part of a broader goal to decommission 2,300 conventional buses.

This initiative aims to improve service quality and reduce PM2.5 air pollution across the metropolitan area. While private operators are expanding their EV fleets, this direct government investment marks a major step towards a cleaner public transit system.

Enhancing Sustainable Water Transport

Bangkok’s low-carbon transport network now includes electric water ferries along the Chao Phraya River. The MINE Smart Ferry service offers a cleaner alternative for commuters, operating on two routes with rail connections. The fleet comprises 35 electric vessels, each with a capacity of 150 to 250 passengers. Services run every 15 to 30 minutes, with a flat fare of THB 30 via contactless systems.

Electric boat in Chao Phraya River. Credit: Boonjira Khoprasert

Accelerating the Low-Carbon Transition

Despite efforts by authorities and operators, unified fare and service integration has yet to materialize. Bangkok’s shift toward sustainable mobility depends on progress in both mass transit and the electrification of informal services such as tuk-tuks and motorcycle taxis. The initiatives above show the potential of low-emission transport solutions to improve both environmental outcomes and access.

However, much of the sector still faces significant challenges. Traditional operators often struggle with high upfront vehicle costs, limited access to financing, a lack of charging infrastructure, and unclear regulatory and technical standards.

To support national efforts, ESCAP is implementing an ASEAN Electric Vehicle (EV) Accelerator Programme in partnership with the ASEAN Secretariat and the Mobility and Vehicle Technology Research Center (MOVE).

The programme aims to strengthen policymaker capacity to accelerate the public transport sector’s transition by developing an “Electric Vehicle Readiness Index” and conducting targeted needs assessments and capacity-building activities. Pilot countries include Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

Building on these initiatives, policymakers should prioritize fare integration and introduce targeted financial instruments such as subsidies or low-interest loans to reduce the cost burden on drivers and small operators. Establishing clear technical standards for vehicle conversions and ensuring interoperability of battery-swapping systems is critical for market stability and safety.

In parallel, coordinated investment from both public and private sectors is needed to scale up charging and maintenance infrastructure. Bangkok’s strong public and political commitment towards a cleaner and more equitable transport system offers valuable lessons for other fast-growing cities.

Tanatcha Supsin-amnuay is an Intern, Transport Division, ESCAP, Madan B. Regmi is Economic Affairs Officer, Transport Division, ESCAP and Yossapong Laoonual is King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi

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By Zofeen Ebrahim
KARACHI, Pakistan, Jul 17 2025 – “It started with a thunderous roar in the distance, followed by the clatter of rocks grinding together,” said Mohammad Hussain, 26, a student, who witnessed the flash flood that hit the lakeside of Attabad on June 25, around 12:30 pm, in the mountainous Hunza Valley, a popular tourist spot in the northern part of Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B).

Standing atop the Moon Bridge, he saw a muddy slush surging at high speed; the sloshing sound came with dull thuds as boulders slammed into the earth. “I was both scared and awestruck,” he told IPS over the phone from Hunza.

The valley had been experiencing unusually high temperatures that week. “We’re mountain folks—we can bear the cold, but not such intense heat,” he said.

Such erratic weather patterns reflect a broader trend.

A 2024 study shows that the fragile mountain ecosystem of G-B is severely affected by extreme weather and climate-related hazards like floods, avalanches, landslides, and glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs). With 50 percent of the 72,971 km² land considered cultivable, the predominantly agrarian community uses just 2% to farm on small plots averaging  0.4 hectares per household. Reduced snowfall has led to water shortages and reduced grazing ground, increasing food insecurity in the region.

Experts warn that no construction should ever be carried out in a natural drainage path or catchment outlet. While these areas may appear stable for decades, a sudden intense flood can lead to devastating consequences. High-risk zones include ravines and low-lying veins that channel rain and meltwater.

Khadim Hussain, director of Gilgit-Baltistan’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), explained that the heatwave had caused rapid snowmelt in the mountains, swelling the Burundubar stream and triggering a flash flood.

The resulting sludge flowed into Attabad Lake—a lake formed in 2010 when a massive landslide dammed the Hunza River, submerging Ainabad village and partially submerging Gulmit and Shishkat.

“The sludge engulfed the Luxus Hotel from both sides, cutting off access and trapping tourists and staff,” said Zubair Ahmed Khan, assistant director at the Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority for Hunza and Nagar, two high-risk disaster-prone districts of G-B.

He has been provided with an excavator and its operator, but the authority had to seek help from boatmen operating in the lake to rescue about 150 stranded people in time from inside the hotel, he told IPS.

Since the hotel began operating seven years ago, the Burundubar stream has flooded only three times—”twice this year,” informed Khan, adding, “The future remains uncertain.”

The experts already foresee the situation worsening.

“As the climate changes, the frequency and intensity of floods in Burundubar have increased, leading to the accumulation of debris in the flood path. This has significantly raised the risk to surrounding infrastructure,” said Shazia Parveen, an environmentalist from Hunza.

Google Earth photos of Luxus Hunza Attabad Lake Resort over time.

She warned that the area, being in a high-risk flood zone, risks losing existing infrastructure and must be declared an Ecologically Sensitive and Critical Area (ESCA) under Gilgit-Baltistan’s 2023 rules.

A post-flood assessment report commissioned by the G-B government concluded that the Burundubar stream posed a “recurring risk of high-intensity flooding endangering the hotel structure, staff, and tourists”.

Vaqar Zakaria, head of the Islamabad-based environmental consulting firm Hagler Bailley Pakistan, said floodplain management laws exist but are rarely enforced.

“Our response is always reactive — panic after the damage, but never a plan to prevent it,” he said. While acknowledging worsening climate impacts, he argued that “90% of the damage is avoidable with proper planning and regulation”. This failure, he added, is why international donors often ignore Pakistan’s climate pleas: “We never admit to poor planning or the blatant disregard of our own laws.”

The consequences of such neglect are visible.

“The Luxus hotel sits in a flood path—it should never have been built,” said local activist Jameel Hunzographer, blaming the government. “The lake was once so clean you could drink from it—no longer.”

But not everyone shares his concern.

“It [the hotel] may be submerged,” admitted 60-year-old Dervaish Ali, “but it will never collapse.” Once a farmer from Ainabad, whose 16-acre orchard was swallowed by Attabad Lake, Ali later turned to construction—and was contracted to build the Luxus hotel. In 2017, he sold — 0.62 acres to the hotel’s owner and used the proceeds to build a home 25 km away, safely outside the hazard zone.

Firmly distancing himself from any blame, he said, “When I sold the land to the owner, he was fully aware of its precarious location, and I was not the only one; several others sold their land too, in the same area.” He acknowledged, however, that the increasing intensity of flash floods—driven by climate change—destroyed the 300 poplar trees he planted near the hotel, on his leftover land, just two years ago.

“Every last one gone,” he said quietly.

Yet, for many activists, this damage is part of a larger pattern of reckless development.

“These flash floods and disasters are of our own making,” said Baba Jan, 48, president of the Gilgit-Baltistan chapter of the left-wing Awami Workers Party. “We’ve turned the region into a concrete jungle and call it development.”

Jailed for ten years in 2011, he had protested “carving mountains, dumping waste into waterways, altering stream courses, and polluting our air—all in the name of tourism.”

Hunzographer also flagged the alarming rise in tree-cutting—clearing land for construction and chopping wood for fuel, due to the lack of electricity and gas.

Opened in 2019 on the shores of Attabad Lake, the Luxus hotel has recently come under sharp criticism from locals—not only for its unsustainable practices and careless approach to hospitality but also for its controversial location. Still, many residents were unwilling to speak on record, fearing reprisals from the hotel’s politically well-connected and influential owners.

President of the Sustainable Tourism Foundation, Aftab Rana, expressed disappointment with the Luxus and other hotels along the Attabad Lake, saying they had the potential to set a “benchmark for sustainable luxury” in the region. Instead, they have become a “symbol of environmentally damaging development”, placing both guests and staff directly in the path of climate-related hazards. He blamed the Environmental Protection Authority for failing to manage the lake’s tourism-related environmental impact.

He has a point. If not for a viral video last month by British vlogger George Buckley exposing the Luxus Hotel’s violations, the G-B government might have stayed asleep. But after the video gained traction, authorities acted—partially sealing the hotel and fining it for allegedly dumping wastewater into the lake, a charge the resort publicly denied. Yet, it paid the fine, effectively admitting guilt despite its claims. A post-flood assessment also cites the hotel’s repeated disregard for environmental warnings, confirming violations of environmental laws.

The G-B EPA has recommended a five-year ban on hotel construction and/or expansion in various parts of G-B, including Attabad, citing unregulated development and lack of wastewater treatment, which is harming public health and the ecosystem.

In addition, the deputy commissioner (the administrative head) of Hunza has taken an unconventional step – exercising the powers conferred on him under the law “in the interest of environmental protection, public health, ecological preservation, and sustainable tourism” has put a complete stop to “new construction or extension of any kind” by suspending issuance of no objection certificates in parts of Hunza, including the Attabad area.

However, the environmental damage extends beyond construction alone.

The constant roar of diesel generators from hotels and restaurants, the smoke-belching vehicles, motorised boats churning toxic fumes into the lake’s air, and the rising dust and noise from throngs of tourists—combined with heaps of plastic waste—are fuelling a growing love-hate relationship between locals and visitors.

“We’re exhausted by tourists, but we depend on them,” said 33-year-old Nur Baig, who runs a co-working space in Hunza. Tourism in Hunza surged after photos of the newly formed Attabad Lake went viral, but the government failed to plan for the influx. For instance, he points out that there are no footpaths, and speeding SUVs now threaten pedestrians, especially children, on the narrow streets.

“We either need a different breed of tourists, who are more respectful of nature and us, or we need to put a stop to tourism,” said Hunzographer.

But there is a deeper shift within the community itself, where economic pressures and changing aspirations have left local people struggling to maintain both their traditions and control over their land.

“The younger, educated generation has turned away from subsistence farming, with the more enterprising moving to urban centres for better livelihood opportunities,” admitted Baig, adding, “Those who stay have ideas but little capital, so outsiders come, cash in, and take our peace with them.”

But not all hope is lost. Amid these changes, some see a path forward—one where tourism benefits locals without costing them their way of life.

A local NGO, Karakoram Area Development Organisation (KADO), for instance, is pushing hotels to swap single-use plastic for reusable fabric bags—and selling them too.

“We carried out a study and found that although there was enough awareness about plastic waste among the locals, the waste jumped to 67 percent in peak tourist season in Hunza,” said Abbas Ali, who heads KADO.

“We’re doing our part,” he added, “But tourists must realise our waste systems are limited—this plastic ends up in our water. They need to share responsibility.”

Rana also believed luxury and sustainability can coexist. With young travellers demanding greener options while their stay is comfortable, governments across the globe are stepping up with stricter rules on energy, emissions, and waste.

In Pakistan, though, he said, “Customer pressure may be growing, but enforcement remains missing.” If hoteliers saw green practices as smart business, he said, they would realise measures like water-saving fixtures, dual-flush toilets, rainwater harvesting, energy-efficient lighting and more can cut costs significantly.

For its part, Rana’s STFP has developed sustainable mountain architecture guidelines, and the government’s Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation has come up with a hefty document on national minimum standards and guidelines for the tourism and hotel industry and shared it with different provincial governments.

“But neither the tourists nor the hotel industries are really interested in adopting standardised green certifications due to a lack of necessary enforcement by the concerned provincial government departments,” he lamented.

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