On July 22, local time, the "Talisman Saber 2023" exercise involving 30,000 people from 13 countries including the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan and South Korea officially kicked off in Australia. The exercise was billed as the largest in a series of "talisman saber" exercises, purported to improve the joint combat capabilities of allies, but foreign media generally linked the exercise to China.
According to Sky News Australia, Peter Jennings, a former Australian defence official, clamored that the presence of Chinese warships on the east coast of Australia "added a little realism" to the "Talisman Saber" military exercise.
The US side also took the opportunity to hype up security issues in the Pacific region. According to the Wall Street Journal, US Secretary of the Navy Toro said on the 21st that the message that this exercise and other concerted actions can send to China is that the "core values" between the participating countries make them closely connected.
The biennial Talisman Saber series began in 2005 and is led by the United States and Australia, and this year marks its tenth.
The exercise was held from July 22 to August 4. In addition to the United States and Australia, 11 countries including the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Tonga participated. In addition, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand participated as observers.
According to a statement from the Australian Department of Defence, the exercise was designed to test the ability of participating militaries to plan and conduct joint military operations, enhance readiness and joint operations capabilities among participating militaries, reflect the strength of the Australian-US alliance and demonstrate the commitment to cooperation between like-minded partners in the region.
Reuters said that at a time when China is becoming an increasingly confident power in the "Indo-Pacific region", the exercise is a "show of strength and unity" by participating countries.
At a military base in northern Australia, more than a dozen guns and aircraft opened fire over the weekend for about an hour. U.S. jet fighters dropped bombs on the hillside, and Australian, South Korean and U.S. artillery units opened fire. There is also a Japanese anti-aircraft missile system nearby.
More than 800 military vehicles will pass through a mobile dock in the Queensland coastal city of Bowen, according to Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles.
"This will be the most important logistical exercise Australia and the United States have held in Australia since World War II," Marles said. ”
About 30,000 troops will participate in the exercise, which will conduct field training, amphibious landings, ground force maneuvers, air and sea operations, and will also focus on logistics as the United States tests the capabilities needed to rapidly deploy troops and equipment in the Pacific. Most of this year's exercises will be held in Queensland, northeast Australia.
Corresponding to the unprecedented scale of this military exercise is the Asia-Pacific security challenge that the United States continues to exaggerate.
On the 21st local time, US Secretary of the Navy Toro said at the opening ceremony of the exercise held at a naval base in Sydney that land, sea and air military platforms are becoming more and more complex, and allies need joint exercises to be able to operate like a task force.
"The most important message that China can draw from this exercise and the concerted actions of our allies and partners is that we are bound together by our core values," he claimed. ”
"We are ready to cooperate effectively to defend our nation's security interests and our shared core values." Toro added.
U.S. Secretary of the Navy Toro
The Wall Street Journal directly reported the exercise under the headline "U.S. allies hold unprecedented exercises in Australia to send a message to China." The exercise was larger and more sophisticated, reflecting the latest U.S. plan to intervene in the Taiwan Strait.
Asked why the exercise was growing, U.S. Army Major Gen. Jared Helvig said, "We realized that we needed to drill a larger operation to be prepared." ”
At the same time, someone set their sights on a Chinese naval ship that appeared off the east coast of Australia.
According to a report by Sky News Australia on July 24, Peter Jennings, a former Australian Ministry of Defence official and former executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, an "anti-China think tank", claimed in an interview that the appearance of Chinese warships "added a bit of realism" to the "Talisman Saber" military exercise.
Jennings claimed: "In a sense, this is useful to us because it presents us with a real threat. ”
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said that Australian reconnaissance aircraft contacted Chinese warships (Source: Australian Department of Defence)
However, Greg Bilton, chief of staff of the Australian Defence Force's joint operations, said on the 21st that they contacted a Chinese ship cruising on the east coast of Australia on the 20th, and the Chinese ship responded that it was "courteous and in line with maritime guidelines."
Mr Bilton said he was not concerned about the activities of the Chinese ships because they had sailed off the coast of Australia before. "I expect it will move south and into the exercise (area). They've been doing this for years, and we're well prepared. ”
The United States, Australia and other countries have held joint military exercises in the Pacific Ocean for many times, and some analysts say that the action is to counter China's influence in the region, in this regard, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin previously said that China has no objection to normal defense cooperation between relevant countries, but relevant cooperation should not be aimed at third parties.
In response to the issue that some countries have hyped up regional security challenges and normalized joint exercises, Defense Ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang said at a regular press conference in June this year that China has always maintained that bilateral and multilateral security cooperation should be conducive to regional peace and stability, and should not target or harm the interests of third parties. At present, the situation in the East and South China Seas has generally remained stable, but some countries outside the region have stirred up troubles for their own selfish interests, engaged in military provocations, created camp confrontation and escalated regional tensions. "Regional countries should be highly vigilant about this, not to take advantage of other countries, and avoid harming their own interests."
This article is an exclusive manuscript of the Observer Network and may not be reproduced without authorization.