Naval forces from India, Australia, Japan and the United States unite for the military exercise in the Bay of Bengal.
India, Australia, Japan and the United States have begun a joint military exercise in the Bay of Bengal, and all four are cautiously monitoring China’s growing military might.
Ships, planes and navy personnel gathered Tuesday in the so-called Malabar exercise.
The Malabar series began in 1992 as a bilateral naval exercise between India and the US.
Japan joined in 2015, while Australia is participating for the first time in more than 10 years, a sign of the growing importance of the group.
“The Malabar exercise is an important opportunity to work together with like-minded nations to support a safe, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region,” Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds said in a statement.
Welcome training opportunity https://t.co/Rjt8N9Va78 #AusNavy #NavyDaily pic.twitter.com/zIdhLDv1jI
– Royal Australian Navy (@Australian_Navy) November 2, 2020
India is currently embroiled in a violent border confrontation with China and has sought closer military ties with other countries.
The border confrontation began in May and escalated in June to become the deadliest violence between the two sides in decades: a confrontation between soldiers with clubs, stones and fists.
The two sides have held several rounds of talks with military, diplomatic and political officials, including negotiations between their foreign and defense ministers in Moscow in September.
The decision to add Australia makes the current version of Malabar the first exercise to include all members of the Quadrangle Safety Dialogue, also known as the Quad.
The group was established in 2007 to counter growing Chinese influence.
The United States dispatched the guided-missile destroyer USS John S McCain, which returned to service this year, three years after a collision that killed 10 sailors.
“A collaborative approach to regional security and stability is important now more than ever, to deter all who challenge a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Ryan Easterday, commander of USS John S McCain.
The drill “will show the high levels of synergy and coordination among friendly navies, which is based on their shared values,” the Indian Navy said.
The naval exercise is scheduled in two phases.
The first takes place in front of the port city of Visakhapatnam, in the southeast of the country, from November 3-6.
The second phase will take place in the Arabian Sea in mid-November.
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