Australia's High Commissioner Philip Green visited the Australian soldiers taking part in Exercise AUSTRAHIND 2026 at the Foreign Training Node in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, this week. He met the 120 members of the Australian Army's 13th Brigade who are training alongside the Indian Army.

Green said the links between the two armies count for more as India and Australia deepen their strategic partnership.

High Commissioner Philip Green meets troops in Thiruvananthapuram

He met soldiers from both contingents at the training area and stood with Indian and Australian officers for a group photograph with the combined force. His message to the troops was short.

"Train to fight, train to win," he said.

High Commissioner Philip Green has held the post since July 2023 and is also accredited as Australia's Ambassador to Bhutan. A career diplomat with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, he earlier served as Ambassador to Germany and as High Commissioner to Singapore, South Africa and Kenya. According to the Australian High Commission in New Delhi, he was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his role in the response to the Bali terrorist attack in 2002.

Exercise AUSTRAHIND 2026 trains for island and coastal operations

The fifth edition of the exercise opened on 19 October and runs until 1 November. Around 120 personnel each from the Indian Army and the Australian Army are taking part, according to the Ministry of Defence. The Indian contingent is drawn from the Garhwal Rifles, along with personnel from other arms and services.

This year's theme is Joint Sub-Conventional Operations in Island and Coastal Environment under Chapter VII of the UN Mandate. Troops from both sides carry out joint planning, tactical drills and combat-oriented training in coastal and island terrain, including surveillance, reconnaissance and aerial and maritime tasks.

New Zealand observes for the first time

An observer delegation from New Zealand is attending the exercise, a first for the series. The ministry said the drills will strengthen military-to-military cooperation, interoperability and mutual trust between India and Australia.

13th Brigade troops come from Western Australia

The Australian contingent comes from the 13th Brigade, a Western Australia formation headquartered at Irwin Barracks in Perth. The same barracks hosted the fourth edition from 13 to 26 October 2025. A Gorkha Rifles battalion led the Indian side there, and that edition focused on joint company-level operations in open and semi-desert terrain. The exercise is hosted by the two countries in turn.

AUSTRAHIND caps a busy year of India-Australia Army contact

The two armies held their 13th Army-to-Army Staff Talks in New Delhi in September. On the closing day, Major General Chris Smith, Deputy Chief of Army, called on General Dhiraj Seth, Chief of the Army Staff.

The Army track runs under the Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation, renewed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Melbourne in July. A month earlier, the joint statement from the second India-Australia Defence Ministers' Dialogue noted that AUSTRAHIND has moved towards amphibious combat and littoral manoeuvre. The same statement provided for wider Indian participation in Exercise Talisman Sabre, the biennial Australia-United States exercise, in 2027.