Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is for the Acting Prime Minister. How is the Albanese Labor government working with our partners to deepen cooperation and expand military exercises to contribute to the security of our Indo-Pacific region?

Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question and acknowledge his distinguished service. Yesterday, along with the member for Solomon, I participated in the 14th US-Australia-Japan Trilateral Defence Ministers' Meeting, along with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Japanese Minister for Defence Gen Nakatani. There is no country with whom we have more in common, with whom we have a greater strategic alignment, than Japan. That is why we have seen that our strategic and defence relationship with our old friend has developed rapidly over the past few years. Part of what we have in common is that for both of us our most important relationship is with the United States. We are both American allies in the Indo-Pacific.

So, this gathering of the three countries was profoundly important for Australia. It is a gathering that is based on practical, real action. Secretary Austin's visit to Darwin was the highest-level visit of an American official since President Obama visited Darwin in 2011 to announce the Marine rotation. In 2018 Prime Minister Abe visited Darwin. But we understand that the visit of Minister Nakatani is actually the first visit of a Japanese defence minister to Darwin, which carries with it a poignancy. This was a historic gathering, and it was a gathering that was carried with weight. The outcomes of this were as significant as those of any of the previous trilaterals.

Yesterday we announced that Japan will now make regular deployments of its Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade to Australia, with a particular focus of working not only with the Australian Army but also with US Marines as part of their rotation. Japan will also participate in Talisman Sabre 2025. This obviously builds the familiarity and interoperability between our respective defence forces and also sends such a powerful message about how our three countries are making a contribution to the collective security of the region in which we live, and we are asserting the rules based order within the Indo-Pacific.

We also agreed that our three countries will commit to consulting with each other on regional security issues and contingencies. That means that our three countries will coordinate and cooperate on contingencies from conflict through to responding to natural disasters. Our three countries are the deepest of friends, and yesterday was an affirmation of our enduring commitment to each other.