TOKYO: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo came down heavily on China at a meeting in Tokyo of the US regional allies.

Pompeo alleged China’s governing Communist Party of “exploitation, corruption and coercion”, BBC reported.

The US Secretary of State was meeting counterparts from India, Australia, and Japan – a group called “The Quad” – to discuss an increasingly assertive China, it said.

Relations between the US and China have currently plummeted to their worst in decades.

Washington, as a counter-measure, has been making efforts to strengthen ties with regional allies, the report said.

The Quad – the other members represented by Japan’s Toshimitsu Motegi, Australia’s Marise Payne and India’s Subrahmanyam Jaishankar – was likely to discuss the coronavirus pandemic, cyber security, and other issues.

“Looking forward to discussing increased cooperation to promote our shared vision for a free and open #IndoPacific, composed of nations that are independent, strong, and prosperous,” Mr Pompeo tweeted.

The Quadrilateral Initiative – informally called the Quad – began in May 2007 with a meeting between the US, India, Japan, and Australia in the Philippine capital Manila.

(With inputs from BBC)