Article Posted on : - Apr 27, 2010

HMAS Maryborough's seaboat crew conducting boarding exercises with Indonesian Warship KRI Wiratno during the first Australian-Indonesian Coordinated Patrol. Photo: ADF

LARRAKEYAH (BNS): The first 'Coordinated Maritime Security Patrol' by the Australian Defence Force and Indonesian Armed Forces concluded on Tuesday at Larrakeyah Barracks.

The two week-long patrol (16-27 April) was conducted to improve maritime security between the ADF and Indonesian Armed Forces along the Australian and Indonesian shared maritime boundaries to the south of West Timor.

“Over the past eleven days, Australia and Indonesia have been operating at sea, on land and in the air together, for the first time, to address shared maritime security threats along our exclusive economic zone boundaries,” said Commodore David Gwyther, the Commander Northern Command and Officer in charge of the ADF Task Group, in a Defence ministry official press release.

“It sends a message to those who may contemplate conducting illegal activities in our maritime zones that the Indonesian Armed Forces and the ADF are working together - so beware” he added.

The HMAS Maryborough’s sea-boat crew of the ADF has conducted boarding exercises with Indonesian Warship KRI Wiratno and PARCHIM Class Corvette Hasan Basri in the patrol.

The patrol included information sharing, interoperability and search and rescue exercises designed to build confidence and improve combined operational performance on the water and in the air.

“Our Defence Forces made great progress in improving our communications, information sharing techniques and maritime security interoperability. It has been a very successful activity and a great step forward in the military to military relationship between our nations,” said Commodore Widodo, the Indonesian Eastern Fleet Sea Combat Commander.

Both the ADF and Indonesian Armed Forces are planning to conduct future Coordinated Maritime Security Patrols and further cooperation on maritime security issues.