United States Army Pacific Commanding General Charles A. Flynn met with Army Chiefs from Australia, Japan, and the Philippines along with the Commander of the III Marine Expeditionary Force at Victoria Barracks, Melbourne. The leaders agreed upon new measures for integrating deterrence activities among regional land forces. These largely consist of adjusting the timing and increasing the scale and complexity of army-to-army exercises, evolving some once bilateral frameworks to now welcome more multilateral involvement among the core grouping. “This is the deepest level of integration among U.S. regional allies I have ever seen,” Flynn said after the gathering, “not only during my tenure as the commanding general but over the course of my entire career.”
Amidst rising tensions and escalating threats throughout the region, the summit occurred in the wake of several favorable policy developments which has created the political conditions for strengthening multilateral cooperation. These include landmark Reciprocal Access Agreements such as the one Japan and the Philippines signed in July, 2024 and another that Australia and Japan signed in 2022. In the 2024 Joint Statement on Australia-U.S. Ministerial Consultations the U.S. and Australia agreed to upgrade key bases, refine requirements to establish an enduring Logistics Support Area in Queensland, and enhance Australian interoperability with more Pacific Nations. Australia also expressed a desire to host additional rotational deployments from US military units including Army watercraft systems.
The policy developments demonstrate the shared will among the countries and lay the groundwork for their militaries to strengthen multilateral deterrence by more collectively countering regional threats. Of note, the Republic of Korea Army, another U.S. ally, has likewise sizably increased its contributions to regional campaigning activities, deploying tactical units and firing platforms to Talisman Sabre in Australia, while sending its largest overseas contingent ever to Cobra Gold in Thailand (also a regional ally) last year. The theme of the day’s discussions centered around core campaigning activities among U.S. allies that offered several opportunities for other regional partners to actively participate.
Earlier in the week, the U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Randy George met with the leaders who attended Friday’s summit. General George shared his vision for transforming the U.S. Army while reinforcing the importance of strengthening cooperation among U.S. Allies and partners. He emphasized how the U.S. Army’s multidomain transformation, what George labels as “Transform in Contact,” will set the conditions for land forces to fight and win as part of a joint and multinational force. He further emphasized the importance of getting the right capabilities in place and into the hands of soldiers, many of which will be showcased during the 25th Infantry Division’s Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center Rotation (JPMRC) in Hawaii next month. “We have to show real capability,” George said, “messaging without capability is just talk.”
The U.S. Army has indeed upscaled the deployment of new and existing capabilities to the Indo-Pacific. In 2023, the Army deployed its Joint Logistics Over the Shore Capability (JLOTS) to Australia for the signature regional exercise Talisman Sabre along with sizable contributions of maneuver units, long range precision fires, sustainment and command and control at the division and corps levels. In April, the 1st Multidomain Task Force (MDTF) deployed its new mid-range capability (MRC) missile system to the Philippines in support of army-to-army and joint exercises. The MRC, or Typhon, offers an extended range anti-ship capability from a land-based mobile firing platform.
Coupled with these combat-credible capabilities, the increased cooperation among regional land forces discussed at the summit will be critical going into 2025. All four parties had witnessed months of aggressive actions by China at Second Thomas Shoal and Sabina Shoal and by North Korea’s uptick in missile testing and launches. The leaders expressed their shared concerns about the deteriorating security environment but assessed that next year provides multiple opportunities to follow a more collaborative, or integrated, approach to deterrence.
The U.S., Australia, and Japan agreed to shift Yama Sakura – a signature operational command post exercise in Japan – to August when China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) annually conducts its culminating large-scale exercise. Long a bilateral army-to-army exercise, Yama Sakura now includes regular participation by Australia’s 1st Division. The Philippine Army has been sending observers for the past two years and will soon incorporate a Philippine Army Division into the mix. The exercises have taken on a new sense of realism and focus amid the tumultuous security conditions in Asia. Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, Chief of the Australian Army, remarked the changes were all about “driving the tempo of our campaign throughout the theater.”
The leaders also agreed to add Australian participation into the next US-Japan field training exercise Orient Shield for the first time. Australia will host the next Talisman Sabre in 2025, and the generals discussed many new aspects of the signature event – set to be the largest to date with over 30,000 personnel from 17 countries likely participating. The 2025 exercise will sprawl across the entire Australian continent and will include demonstrations of newly fielded multidomain capabilities along with an amphibious training event at Shoalwater Bay.
The year is no less critical for the Philippines, whose forces have repeatedly been harassed by Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea and malign information campaigns. The Philippines will expand the annual US-Philippine exercise Balikatan or “Should-to-Shoulder” to conduct a “full battle test” of their plan to defend their sovereign territory with the help of forces from across U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Given the policy developments, the leaders discussed how to best begin incorporating forces from the Australian Army and Japan Ground Self Defense Force into the army-to-army portion that bookends the joint exercise dubbed Salaknib.
The grouping further agreed to a regular cadence of meetings among the senior leaders and subordinate staff. The purpose, they generally agreed, was to develop and refine concrete objectives that deliver deterrence in more innovative and collaborative ways as part of the combined joint force.
