By Zachary Keck
The first ever U.S.-China-Australia military drill illustrates the extent of their distrust — and nothing more.
This week China, Australia, and the United States began their first ever trilateral military exercise.
The exercise is taking place in the wilderness in northern Australia, and is scheduled to run through October 25. The three countries first announced that they would be holding the unprecedented military exercise back in July. At the time of that announcement, officials said that the negotiations for Exercise Kowari 14, as the exercise is called, had already been going on for months, and the exact details of the drills were still being worked out.
In a statement released at the start of the drills this week, Australia’s Defense Ministry said that ten soldiers from each one of the three countries are directly participating in the exercise, but an 100 additional Australian military personnel would be supporting the participants in some capacity.
In the same statement, Australian Defense Minister David Johnston was quoted as saying: “Exercise Kowari 14 will provide participants with an understanding of the basic principles, procedures, techniques and equipment that can enhance survival prospects in the harsh Australian environment.”
“The exercise demonstrates the willingness of Australia, China and the United States to work together in practical ways,” Australia’s defense minister added.
Read the full story at The Diplomat