Indonesia To Host Super Garuda Shield Military Exercise, Malaysia Among Observing Nations

JAKARTA, Aug 23 (Bernama) -- Hundreds of military personnel from various countries are set to gather in Indonesia for the Super Garuda Shield 2024 multinational joint military exercise, which will be held from August 26 to September 6 at several locations across the republic.

Apart from Indonesia as the host, participating countries include the United States (US), Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

Malaysia will join as an observing nation, alongside Brazil, Brunei, Fiji, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Vanuatu.

The Indonesian National Armed Forces Information Centre in a statement Friday said  Australian army personnel had arrived at the Indonesian Navy Juanda Airbase in Surabaya, East Java, on Thursday, aboard Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) aircraft.

Hundreds of US Army and Marine Corps personnel had landed at the same airbase on the previous day, departing directly from Hawaii via Omni Air commercial flight.

“Super Garuda Shield continues to solidify the US-Indonesia Major Defence Partnership Defence Cooperation Agreement and advances cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region,” said the US Embassy in Jakarta in a separate statement.

This year’s exercise will feature a new Cyber Exercise component in Surabaya to address emerging cyber threats and the debut of the iconic twin-engine, tandem-rotor US Chinook CH-47 helicopters in Indonesia.

The training will culminate in a combined field exercise including a coordinated airborne operation where troops from the US, Indonesia, and Japan will perform joint parachute jumps.

 -- BERNAMA