Australia's traditional and longstanding suspicion of India’s maritime security intentions may finally come to an end. For the first time, it is sending a team to the “Milan” multinational exercise to be hosted by the Indian Navy at Port Blair next month. Although a standing invitee for many years, Australia did not participate in the last four rounds.In clearly a post-tsunami volte face, it has now communicated to Naval HQs its intention to improve relations by initially cooperating in mine warfare and clearance diving operations. In 2008, it will also, for the first time, bring a warship into Indian waters for exercises, sources said.To test the waters, Australia sent its deputy naval chief Rear Admiral R M Max Hancock to New Delhi and Mumbai early this month, along with members of the Australian Office of International Relations. In a sign that Australia may also be interested in purchasing India-built vessels, Hancock was given a tour of INS Mysore, one of the Indian Navy’s indigenous guided missile destroyers.Navy sources said, ‘‘The Australian team at ‘Milan-06’ will participate in a seminar, where there will be discussions on security of sea lanes of communication (SLOC), preservation and exploitation of the marine environment and disaster management.’’In the ’80s, Australia was a vocal critic of India’s rapid acquisition of long-range ships and aircraft from Russia, calling into question New Delhi’s intentions even at global fora. Despite the subsequent improvement in diplomatic relations, defence ties came to a head after the Pokhran nuclear tests.The Indian Navy, in reaching out to eastern neighbours, cannot hope to gain from much smaller navies. But the Australian Navy, while small, has modern force-multipliers that allow it to efficiently operate along the country’s 60,000 km coastline.
