Prime Minister Scott Morrison will join US President Joe Biden and the leaders of Japan and India this weekend for the first-ever high-level summit of the four-member Quad alliance.
The virtual meeting between the leaders of the four-member Quadrilateral Security Dialogue forum comes as the countries grapple with heightened tensions with China in Indo-Pacific region.
Mr Morrison will meet Mr Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the summit, which is expected to cover the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, and economic challenges.
The roll-out of vaccines to developing Asia-Pacific nations is also expected to be a major focus of the talks.
Prime Minster Scott Morrison said the meeting marked a step up to a "whole new level" for the alliance, which he described as "an anchor of peace and stability in the region."
"The Indo-Pacific is our world. This is where Australia lives," he told reporters.
"What the quad is about, is ensuring an open, independent, sovereign Indo-Pacific that enables all countries and nations within the Indo-Pacific to engage with each other."
The Quad - formalised in 2007 - has previously met at the foreign minister level but not at a leaders level.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the summit showed the Biden administration is deeply engaged with the Indo-Pacific.
"[This] speaks to the importance we place on close cooperation with our allies and partners in the Indo-pacific," she said.
"A range of issues will be discussed ... facing the global community from the threat of COVID to economic cooperation and of course to the climate crisis."
The United States is looking to strengthen ties with key allies as China takes an increasingly assertive foreign policy approach in the Indo-Pacific region.
Mr Biden has also spoken about his desire to encourage stronger global action on climate change from world leaders.
Australia last year joined large scale military exercises in the Indo-Pacific involving the US, Japan and India - nations that hold a deep interest in the region’s security.
Australian Strategic Policy Institute analyst Michael Shoebridge said the coalition of countries has been viewed warily by Beijing.
"Beijing will be concerned about this [meeting]," he told SBS News.
"There real concern is this is a really effective multilateral grouping ... they're worried about what it can do to prevent coercive use of Chinese power."
The Quad meeting is scheduled for 13 March.
