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The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) — comprising the United States, Japan, India and Australia — will hold its first leaders' summit in more than two years in Manila, Philippines, next month, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed (SCMP, October 20). Rubio said during an interview with Indian news channel CNN-News18, "It's been agreement now that we're going to do it; we're going to do it in Manila, at the Asean conference" (SCMP, October 20). The summit is scheduled to take place just days before US President Donald Trump meets Chinese President Xi Jinping in Shenzhen, China (SCMP, October 20). The Philippine ambassador to the United States signalled possible meetings of the "Squad" — an informal defence grouping distinct from the Quad — ahead of the Asean gathering in Manila (SCMP, October 22). The Squad is described as part of a US-led regional strategy to counter China's growing influence in the Asia-Pacific and reportedly comprises the US along with other regional partners, though the article's description of its full membership was cut off in available reporting (SCMP, October 22). The timing places the Quad meeting alongside the Asean summit in Manila, underscoring the grouping's effort to coordinate Indo-Pacific strategy amid rising tensions with China, including recent disputes in the South China Sea and around Taiwan. The gap of over two years since the last leaders' summit had raised questions about the Quad's cohesion and priorities under the current US administration. This is a developing story worth tracking given the Quad's role as a central vehicle for US Indo-Pacific strategy, its direct relevance to China containment efforts, the emergence of the related "Squad" grouping as a possible parallel diplomatic track, and the notable juxtaposition with the Trump-Xi meeting in Shenzhen.