Page 45 - Australian Defence Magazine October 2021

OCTOBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
DEFENCE IN THE NORTH 45
In late August, HMAS Canberra and HMAS Anzac set sail from Darwin on Indo- Pacific Endeavour 21 (IPE21), Australia’s flagship regional engagement activity. As this magazine hits desks the two ships will be conducting a range of (contactless) activities with regional partner nations.
EWEN LEVICK | MELBOURNE
DEFENCE announced the deployment not long after confirm- ing that the ADF is once again participating in Exercise Mal- abar alongside India, Japan and the US – together known as the Quad – for the second time, after many years of being left out. India was previously reluctant to allow Australian participation, until its military suffered fatalities in border clashes with Chinese troops high in the Himalayas.
Together, these deployments are indicative of Australia’s role in a growing alignment of nations seeking to preserve the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific. There is a good reason why Exercise Talisman Sabre gathers more par- ticipants every year: the latest iteration included a South Korean destroyer alongside forces from New Zealand, the US, Canada, the UK and Japan, with French, Indian and Indonesian observers.
In addition, at the 2021 iteration of the annual Australia- US Ministerial Consultations, both governments said that the US force presence in Australia would grow, specifically through the rotational deployment of all types of US air- craft, increasing the logistics and sustainment capabilities of US surface and subsurface vessels in Australia, conduct- ing more complex and more integrated land exercises, and establishing a ‘combined logistics, sustainment, and main- tenance enterprise’ to combined military operations.
This news came shortly after Australia decided to scrap the Future Submarine program with Naval Group and the French government to join the AUKUS pact with the UK and the US, which in addition to procuring nuclear-pow- ered submarines for the RAN also includes sharing infor- mation and expertise in AI, quantum technology, under- water systems and long-range strike capabilities.
Australia’s contribution to the regional order is multi- faceted, but our continental geography plays a large role. The expanses of northern Australia offer unrivalled train- ing opportunities, strategically vital defence infrastructure, and maritime sustainment capabilities at the nexus of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. This means there have been substantial opportunities for domestic defence industry in northern Australia.
TRAINING
Northern Australia plays a core role in Australia’s rela- tionships with the US and Singapore, our third and fifth- largest trading partners respectively, as well as with Japan and India.
The US military’s rotational presence in the Northern Territory is well-known. Last year’s rotation saw the ADF and locally-based US Marine forces exercise alongside B-1B Lancers and B-2 Spirit bombers flown in from Guam and supported by USAF air-to-air refuelling aircraft op- erating from Darwin. This year’s rotation reached a full- strength of 2,200 personnel in June ahead of Exercise Talisman Sabre, which involved a US Navy Expeditionary
LEFT: The sun sets behind a row of F/A-18F Super Hornets at RAAF Base Darwin during Exercise Arnhem Thunder 21.
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