SOURCE: Hindustan Times
Australia on Monday said its participation next month in the Malabar naval exercise, which features the navies of India, the US and Japan, will bolster the ability of the four countries to uphold peace and stability across our region.
India confirmed that it has invited Australia to participate in this year’s Malabar exercise, which began in 1992 as a bilateral drill between the Indian and US navies. Japan joined the manoeuvres as a permanent member in 2015, and this year’s edition will be the first military drill to include all members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad following its revival in 2017.
Australia’s foreign minister Marise Payne said in a statement that the announcement was “another important step in Australia’s deepening relationship with India”.
“This builds on the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, to which Prime Minister [Scott] Morrison and Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi agreed on 4 June 2020, and which I progressed with my counterpart, minister of external affairs Jaishankar, this month when we met in Tokyo,” she said.
“It will bolster the ability of India, Australia, Japan and the United States to work together to uphold peace and stability across our region,” Payne added.
During the virtual summit between the two prime ministers in June, India and Australia had signed the Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) to facilitate reciprocal access to military bases, to allow for more complex joint exercises and to improve interoperability between the armed forces of the two sides.
The Australian statement said this year’s exercise will bring together “four key regional defence partners” and defence minister Linda Reynolds said the Malabar 2020 marked a milestone opportunity for the Australian Defence Force.
“High-end military exercises like Malabar are key to enhancing Australia’s maritime capabilities, building interoperability with our close partners, and demonstrating our collective resolve to support an open and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” she said.
“Exercise Malabar also showcases the deep trust between four major Indo-Pacific democracies and their shared will to work together on common security interests,” Reynolds added.
Australia last participated in the Malabar exercise in 2007 along with the navies of several other countries.
The activities of the Quad have gained pace against the backdrop of China’s growing assertiveness and aggressive activities across the Indo-Pacific. India had held off on announcing Australia’s participation in the Malabar exercise because of sensitivities linked to ongoing negotiations with China on the border standoff, people familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity.
