Phase II of training exercise MALABAR kicked off Oct. 11 2021 with participating forces from the Indian Navy, Royal Australian Navy, Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force hosted by the U.S. Navy in the Bay of Bengal in order to strengthen quad-national interoperability.
China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the two countries should “do things that are conducive to regional peace and stability, instead of flexing their muscles.”
Some 4,000 people in the coastal town of Mallacoota fled to the shore as winds pushed a fire toward their homes under a sky darkened by smoke and turned blood-red by flames.
China claims the strategic waterway virtually in its entirety and is sensitive to all foreign naval action in the area, especially by the U.S. and allies such as Australia.
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