Quad needs a restart and the ball is in American court

With President Donald Trump blowing hot and cold on the India-US relationship that was once called a “defining partnership of the 21st century,” the future of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) and more immediately, the fate of the Quad Leadership Summit scheduled in New Delhi is under the scanner. Conjectures abound, particularly on the likely nonattendance of President Donald Trump, even as the ambassador designate to India, Sergio Gor, landed in the Indian capital to connect with the Indian leadership and get a lay of the land before he presents his credentials. While the Quad is ideally driven by its strategic purpose and goals, it cannot be ignored that the absence of the US President from the leadership summit will emit confusing signals about the immediate future of this gro