Despite tariff onslaught, India-US-Japan-Australia maritime drill on schedule

Despite India facing punitive tariffs from the US, the two countries are scheduled to join Japan and Australia to conduct their annual marquee maritime exercise in November.

The four-nation exercise called ‘Malabar’ is often dubbed by Beijing as ‘anti-China’, largely due to the fact that the four partners in ‘Malabar’ are also partners in the Quad. 

The exercise this year is scheduled to be hosted by the US at Guam, one of its military bases in the western part of the Pacific Ocean.  Guam, an island, is some 2,500 east of the Philippines.

Sources said the exercise was on schedule, there was no change so far. A ‘joint planning conference’ that aims to iron out scheduling, logistics and the scope of the exercise, is set to be conducted in the next couple of weeks.

Media reports from the US suggest that President Donald Trump might not travel for the Quad leader’s summit to be hosted by India later this year. New Delhi has so far not responded to these media reports. 

India-US ties have plunged after Trump imposed 50 per cent tariff on India, among the highest in the world. Half of this tariff is punitive, in retaliation to the purchase of Russian crude oil. The other half stems from the stalked trade negotiations.

Last year in October, India had hosted the ‘Malabar’, beginning with the harbour phase in Visakhapatnam, followed by the Sea Phase.  The Malabar-2024 was carried out as of the most comprehensive version of all editions so far, incorporating complex operational scenarios, the Ministry of Defence had said after the exercise.

Exercise Malabar, which began in 1992 as a bilateral naval drill between the United States and Indian Navy, has evolved into a key multilateral event aimed at enhancing interoperability, fostering mutual understanding, and addressing shared maritime challenges in the Indian Ocean and Indo-Pacific region.

The exercise gains importance as all four countries operate the same maritime surveillance planes which are also capable of hunting submarines. These planes can generate a common ‘picture’ of the sea.

The four also have in their arsenal other common platforms, which can enable seamless communication with each other.

Last year, Malabar had focused on a broad range of activities designed to enhance cooperation and operational capabilities. This year, the tempo is expected to be the same.

This could include discussions on special operations, surface, air, and anti-submarine warfare. Complex maritime operations such as anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare, and air defence exercises could also be conducted at sea.