U.S., Japan, South Korea, and seal joint training off the coast of Tokyo… Checking China’s expansion of maritime military power

The United States, Japan, Australia, and India, members of the four-nation security consultative body Quad, conducted the '2026 Malabar Exercise' at the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's Yokosuka Base on the 5th.

This joint exercise, which began between the Indian and US navies in 1992, is conducted annually on a rotating basis in waters surrounding the participating countries.

It was held in the waters off Sydney, Australia in 2023, in the Bay of Bengal in eastern India in 2024, and in the waters around Guam in the United States last year.

Australia first participated in the training in 2007, but withdrew due to protests from China, and joined again in 2020.

The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has been participating as a regular member since 2015.

This year's training, which marked its 7th consecutive year, involved approximately 200 participants from four navies, training high-intensity joint combat posture in anti-submarine warfare, anti-aircraft and missile defense, and enemy ship strike operations.

Although the participating countries maintain that this is not a military exercise targeting a specific country, the prevailing analysis is that it is aimed at keeping China in check, which is expanding its military power in the maritime region, focusing on the East and South China Seas.

In addition to the United States, Japan, and Australia, which have a close strategic and security partnership at the level of an alliance or quasi-alliance, the reason India is participating in this exercise is analyzed to be conscious of China.

This is because India is wary of China's expansion of military influence in the Indian Ocean, including its efforts to secure access to Pakistani ports.

Commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet, Commander Patrick Hannipin, explained at the Malabar opening ceremony that this exercise is an extension of the largest U.S.-Japan joint exercise, "Keen Sword," held across Japan at the end of last month.

Through Kinsword, a regular joint military exercise between the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military, Japan is evaluated as showing off its military solidarity with its largest ally, the United States, and keeping North Korea, China, and Russia in check, which have recently increased their military and political closeness.

Prior to the Malabar exercise, Commander Hannipin also introduced the fact that earlier this month, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels were integrated with the U.S. aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt strike group and conducted operations in the South China Sea.

“Highly integrated operations to ensure logistics transport flow and support uninterrupted maritime operations across the region are being practiced through Exercise Malabar,” he added.

Katsushi Omachi, Commander of the Maritime Self-Defense Force Self-Defense Fleet, emphasized, "The security environment in the Indo-Pacific region is in an increasingly complex and difficult situation. The ability to communicate between countries and conduct operations together is essential to solve common challenges."

Fleet commanders from Australia and India also emphasized that like-minded countries should conduct various operational exercises on a regular basis to promote military stability in the Indo-Pacific.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced during his visit to India on the 20th of last month (local time) that the Quad summit will be held on the sidelines of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) summit to be held in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, in the middle of this month.

Quad is a security consultative body that started at the suggestion of Japan, and the summit meeting has not been held since September 2024. If the Quad summit is held, it will be the first since US President Donald Trump took office in his second term.