INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
NEW DELHI: The superior Malabar marine exercise, which is the most noticeable manifestation of the expanding military interoperability
amongst the Quad nations in the crucial Indo-Pacific area, will be carried out off Australia for the first time this August.India will be
dispatching frontline warships along with P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft for the forthcoming 27th edition of the Malabar exercise,
which started as a bilateral endeavour in between India and US in the 1990s and then formally included Japan as a routine participant in
2015 and finally Australia in 2020 to complete the Quad.Australia has actually also welcomed India to participate in its biggest biennial
Talisman Sabre tri-service exercise with the United States and a few other countries that will be performed from July 21 to August 4
All the four Quad nations have openly stated their intent to prevent any browbeating in the Indo-Pacific in the face of Chinas aggressive
and expansionist behaviour in the whole area
It is natural progression that the Malabar, which was up until now carried out either off India or Japan, now heads to Australia
After the Malabar was held off Yokosuka near the East China Sea last year, Australia was eager to host the workout this time, a senior
official told TOI on Sunday
The Quad nations, which have affirmed their dedication for a free, open and rules-based global order throughout the whole Indo-Pacific, are
now equal stakeholders in the Malabar series of exercises, he added.With China quick developing its Navy, which is already the worlds
largest with 355 warships and submarines, its felt that a structured maritime partnership among the Quad countries is required to tackle any
obstacles in the years ahead
While Indias defence ties with countries like the US and Japan have typically been strong, Beijings muscle-flexing in the Indo-Pacific have
actually led New Delhi and Canberra to shed their previous inhibitions in strengthening their bilateral military engagement, securing as
they do the 2 flanks of the Indian Ocean.Australian PM Anthony Albanese will be going to India on a four-day bilateral see next month, and
will return for the G20 summit in September
In in between, PM Narendra Modi will be in Australia for the Quad leaders summit.Australia is keen to even more broaden defence ties with
India by increasing the complexity of bilateral and multilateral workouts, improving cooperation in maritime domain awareness and mutual
military logistics, exchanging categorized details and intelligence-sharing, and kicking-off military-industrial cooperation.
