India & Australia reflect on defence ties ahead of joint exercise Austra Hind's conclusion

As India and Australia join forces for the ongoing military exercise ‘Austra Hind 22', Major General Chris Field of the Australian Army and India’s Lt. General M.V. Suchindra Kumar, Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy) gathered for a meeting to consolidate defence relations between the two nations on Saturday. 

"Maj Gen Chris Field from the @AustralianArmy called on Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar DCOAS (Strat) and discussed about the ongoing joint Exercise #AustraHind between both Armies and ways to further enhance bilateral defence cooperation," read the caption of a post shared by the Additional Directorate General of Public Information (ADG PI)- Indian Army on Twitter. 

The pictures display the military men engaging in talks and holding hands as they pose for photographs. Another image shared by the account on Twitter features Indian and Australian troops partaking in military exercises for the ‘Austra Hind 22', which commenced at the Mahajan Field Firing Range in Rajasthan on November 28, 2022, and is set to conclude on December 11. "Troops of #IndianArmy and @AustralianArmy exchanged their expertise in the employment of cutting edge #drone technology including #nanodrones in combat," reads the caption of another tweet. 

What is the key aim of the joint military exercise?

The key focus of the joint exercise is to conduct peacekeeping operations that lie under the mandate of the United Nations, according to a statement issued by the Defence Ministry. “Aim of the exercise is to build positive military relations, imbibe each other's best practices and promote the ability to operate together while undertaking multi-domain operations in Semi deserts terrain under a UN peace enforcement mandate.”

The 'Austra Hind' is a military event that will be conducted annually between the Indian and the Australian Army. This year, the former comprises troops from the Dogra Regiment, while the latter consists of soldiers from the 13th Brigade of the 2nd Division. The event comes just days after the 12th Edition of Exercise 'Agni Warrior' wrapped up on November 30, 2o22 at Devlali's Field Firing Ranges in the state of Maharashtra. The  'Agni Warrior' is a joint military exercise between Singapore's Armed Forces and the Indian Army's artillery elements.