Australia and Nato members begin air combat drills as China tensions grow

Australia kicked off a large-scale air combat exercise with Nato members and Indo-Pacific countries on Friday amid rising tensions in the region.

A total of 17 countries will take part in the biennial Exercise Pitch Black in Australia’s Northern Territory from August 19 to September 8. Germany, Japan, and South Korea will be full participants for the first time.

The exercise comes at a time of rising tensions between China and the US and its allies over the Taiwan Strait, where the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted military exercises in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei earlier this month.

According to the Australian air force, the exercise is designed to test and improve multinational force integration and “recognise Australia’s strong relationships and the high value we place on regional security and fostering closer ties throughout the Indo-Pacific region”.

As many as 2,500 personnel and 100 aircraft will take part in the exercise, including participants from Nato members Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Britain and the United States as well as Nato partners New Zealand, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates. The air forces of Indonesia, India, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand will also take part in the drill.

Relations between Canberra and Beijing have not improved significantly since the Australian election in May.

Beijing accused Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong of “finger-pointing” in her criticism of Chinese military exercises around Taiwan earlier this month.