The Quad, or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, comprises four big, democratic economies: the United States, Japan, India and Australia.

Over the years, the Quad has been incorrectly called an "Asian NATO," especially when it comes to security concerns around another big power in the region — China. 

The Quad countries have cooperated in areas ranging from health and infrastructure development to military exercises —most notably the Exercise Malabar naval war games, which have developed into a permanent feature of the Quad.  

"Because it has no specific mandate, they can make economic or even global warming issues part of the mandate of the Quad," said Ted Kemp, CNBC International digital managing editor, and author of a game-theory driven project on the future of the Quad. 

That includes being an effective counterbalance to China's dominance in the Indo-Pacific region.  

"What the Quad countries individually and collectively have been concerned about is about China's behavior," Tanvi Madan, director of The India Project at the Brookings Institution, told CNBC. "The idea is to provide choice, stability, and to bring resources to the region that otherwise might not have been available." 

Watch the video above to learn more about the Quad's influence in the Indo-Pacific region.