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www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know Quad Aligned For Closer Collaboration, Delivering Results For Indo-Pacific: US Envoy Sergio Gor U S Ambassador to India Sergio Gor stated on Thursday that the Quad grouping remains united in deep- ening cooperation and driving tangible outcomes to foster a free and open Indo-Pacific. Gor’s remarks came after he met with Australia’s High Commissioner to India Philip Green and Japan’s Ambassador to India, Keiichi Ono, to review forthcoming Quad engagements. The Quad framework comprises four member states: India, Australia, Japan, and the United States, dedicated to operating as a force for global good while promoting an open, free, and inclusive Indo-Pacific that remains prosperous and resilient. “Productive discussions today with Australia’s High Commissioner to India, Philip Green and Japan’s Ambassador to India, Ono Keiichi, on upcoming Quad initiatives and meetings. Together with India, our four nations are aligned in advancing closer collaboration and delivering results for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Gor wrote in a post on X following the interaction. Last month, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, Australian Foreign Minister PennyWong, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio convened for the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Manila. During the meeting, the ministers reiterated their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific while underlining their firm backing for ASEAN unity and central- ity within the region. In a joint declara- tion, EAM Jaishankar, Wong, Motegi, and Rubio highlighted the Quad’s resolve towards regional prosperity and its partnership with ASEAN and its member nations. “As ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partners, we, the Secretary of State of the United States and the Foreign Ministers of Australia, India, and Japan, met today in Manila to reaffirm our commitment to strengthening a free and open Indo- Pacific and our unwavering support for ASEAN unity and centrality. We are deep- ly invested in the region’s success and in cooperating with ASEAN and its member states,” the joint statement issued after the Manila meeting read. The foreign ministers also addressed regional security issues and discussed ways to reinforce support for the “practi- cal implementation” of the ASEAN Out- look on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) through “shared priorities of maritime and trans- national security, economic prosperity and security, critical and emerging tech- nologies, and humanitarian assistance and emergency response.” The declaration emphasized that the Quad continues to stand united in its core belief that “peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific maritime domain underpin the security and prosperity of the region.” - ANI US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, right, with Australia’s envoy to India Philip Green. PHOTO:X.COM/USANDINDIA Indian National Ordered Removed From US After Being Sentenced For Visa Fraud Conspiracy A n Indian national unlawfully residing inWorces- ter, Mass., was sentenced July 29, 2026, in federal court in Boston in connection with a conspiracy to conduct staged armed robberies of conve- nience stores for the purpose of allowing store clerks to falsely claim they were crime victims on immigration applications. Mitul Patel, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Myong J. Joun to time served (one day) in prison and a $1,000 fine. The defendant was also ordered re- moved from the United States. The defendant was charged by criminal complaint in March 2026 and pleaded guilty in June 2026. Ten others involved in the scheme, were charged in the same crimi- nal complaint. The details contained in the charging documents are allegations and the remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law, the Justice Department press release said. According to the charging documents, beginning in March 2023, Rambhai Patel and his co-conspirators set up and carried out staged armed robberies of at least six convenience/liquor stores and fast-food restaurants in Massachusetts and elsewhere. It is alleged that the purpose of the staged robberies was to allow the clerks present to falsely claim that they were victims of a violent crime on an application for U non-immigration status (UVisa). A UVisa is available to victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and who have been helpful to law enforcement in the investiga- tion or prosecution of criminal activity. During the staged robberies, the “robber” would al- legedly threaten store clerks with an apparent firearm before taking cash from the register and fleeing, while the interaction was captured on store surveillance video. The clerks would then wait five or more minutes until the “robber” had escaped before calling police to report the “crime.” The “victims” are alleged to have each paid Rambhai Patel to participate in the scheme. In turn, Rambhai Patel paid the store owners for the use of their stores for the staged robbery. The organizer Rambhai Patel, the “robber,” and the getaway driver Balwinder Singh were previously charged and later convicted in May 2025. Mitul Patel, sentenced July 29, 2026, paid Rambhai Patel so that he could partici- pate as a “victim” in a staged armed robbery of a store in Worcester, Mass. in October 2023. From Justice Department press release Community News India Times (August 15, 2026 - August 21, 2026) August 21, 2026 8 US - India