A beach assault undertaken by an Australian M1A1 Abrams main battle tank on Cowley Beach in Queensland as part of Exercise ‘Keris Woomera'. (Commonwealth of Australia)
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) and Indonesian National Armed Forces (Tentara Nasional Indonesia: TNI) have teamed up for Exercise ‘Keris Woomera', the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) announced on 3 November. The exercise will conclude on 21 November.
The drills take place after the two countries signed a key defence agreement in August that enables greater military interoperability.
The DoD said in a press release that the exercise is the “largest combined joint activity” by the ADF and TNI in recent history, with approximately 2,000 personnel participating in the drills.
The DoD said the exercise features a combined joint live-fire exercise consisting of tanks, artillery, infantry, and attack helicopters. The DoD also said 35 TNI personnel will deploy onboard HMAS Adelaide in Darwin to conduct integration training as part of the drills.
Australian DoD spokesperson told Janes, “The exercise will occur across multiple locations in Australia and Indonesia.”
The DoD mentioned that the exercise will train on force integration, amphibious reconnaissance in transit to Indonesia, amphibious beach landing, non-combatant evacuation operations, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
The DoD also said this is the first time Lockheed Martin F-35A is involved in a combined exercise with Indonesia.
Australia's Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral Justin Jones, said, “By training together, our forces build upon shared tactics, techniques, and procedures to enhance interoperability and readiness to respond to shared security challenges in the region.”
The exercise is also part of Australia's ‘Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2023', which is its largest engagement activity in the region.
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