Soldiers from the U.S. and allied nations joined a live-fire drill last week in Indonesia. It was part of annual joint combat exercises amid growing Chinese maritime activity in the Indo-Pacific region.
More than 5,000 personnel from the U.S., Indonesia, Australia, Japan and Singapore participated in this year’s Super Garuda Shield exercises, making them the largest since they began in 2009.
Nine other nations, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Papua New Guinea and East Timor sent observers to the exercises, which began on August First, on the island of Sumatra.
Chinese state media have accused the U.S. of building an Indo-Pacific alliance similar to NATO. Government officials in Beijing have said the purpose would be to limit China’s growing military and diplomatic influence in the South China Sea.
Increased activities by Chinese coast guard vessels and fishing boats around Indonesia’s Natuna Islands in the South China Sea in July 2020 prompted Indonesia's navy to conduct a large drill in the area.
Connie Bakrie is a security analyst at the University of Indonesia.
She says Indonesia saw the exercises with the U.S. as a deterrent in defense of the Natuna Islands. For Washington, the drills were part of efforts to show a united front against China’s military buildup in the South China Sea.
The joint combat exercises ended on Sunday.
