A Canadian warship has arrived in Australia ahead of its participation in a multinational naval exercise alongside more than a dozen other Indo-Pacific allies. HMCS Charlottetown and its embarked Cyclone helicopter will join this month’s Exercise Kakadu, hosted by the Royal Australian Navy and featuring more than 6,000 international security personnel. The biennial maritime exercise is intended to strengthen partnerships and interoperability between the allied naval forces, and support what the Australian navy described in a statement Wednesday as “a rules-based regional order.” The Canadian frigate’s arrival in Australia follows meetings earlier this month between the two countries’ prime ministers and ministers of defence, where discussions largely focused on greater economic and security co-operation. During a port visit last year, the Australian military successfully rearmed a Canadian frigate with advanced Harpoon missiles, marking just the second time the two counties had demonstrated such a complex munitions exchange capability. HMCS Charlottetown spokesperson Lt. Rosa Gutierrez says this month’s exercise won’t introduce any new capabilities, but it will offer a rare opportunity for the Halifax-based warship to collaborate with allies from the Pacific region. The warship and its roughly 240 sailors and air crewmembers are expected to participate in anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare and ship-boarding exercises alongside naval forces from India, Japan, Thailand, France and elsewhere. “Multinational exercises like this strengthen our maritime partnerships and ensure we can operate effectively together in support of regional stability and a safe and secure Indo-Pacific,” said Cmdr. Johnathan Maurice, ship’s commanding officer, in a statement. Ottawa has sought to enhance its military posture in the Indo-Pacific region since 2023, when it increased the number of annual warship deployments to the region from two to three.
