Indo-Pacific Endeavour 19 (IPE 19), now in its third iteration, has commenced with the departure of HMA Ships Canberra, Success, Newcastle, and Parramatta from Fremantle.
1000 embarked ADF personnel will carry out a series of engagement activities and military training exercises during port visits in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
Attending the launch on behalf of Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne, Minister for Defence Industry Senator Linda Reynolds said she was pleased with the level of engagement planned with Australia’s Indian Ocean Region partners over the next three months.
“The ADF enjoys a long-standing relationship with security forces throughout South and Southeast Asia,” Minister Reynolds said.
“These relationships are strengthened by annual exercises and engagements, such as the Indo-Pacific Endeavour series.”
IPE 19 will incorporate Australia’s defence industry into the port visits.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to demonstrate Australian Defence capacity across the spectrum of ADF activities during IPE19, with defence industry representatives participating to highlight their products and services,” Minister Reynolds said.
Minister Pyne said building interoperability with key partners and improving coordination of humanitarian and security responses is a priority for Defence.
“IPE 19 is a major regional engagement activity for the ADF, which delivers on the promise of the 2016 Defence White Paper to strengthen Australia’s engagement and partnerships with regional security forces,” Minister Pyne said.
“Our strong and enduring relationships with regional militaries, governments and local communities are critical to this.”