Australia’s Navy recently took part in the eighth iteration of Exercise Sama Sama, deploying personnel to the Philippine island of Luzon during Navy’s largest contingent for a harbour phase yet.
Working together with multilateral partners from Canada, France, Japan, the Philippines and the United States, the Australian contingent conducted five subject matter expert exchanges: maritime domain awareness, expeditionary logistics and shipyard maintenance, maritime law, explosive ordinance disposal and public affairs.
Head of delegation for the Australian exercise contingent, Captain John Cowan, said the success of the activity solidified the navy-to-navy relationship between Australia and the Philippines.
“Exercise Sama Sama was an excellent opportunity to highlight the strength of our partnerships with other regional navies and our shared commitment to peace, security and cooperation in the maritime domain,” Captain Cowan said.
“The exchanges we participated in allowed us to share knowledge and increase awareness of partner nation compatibility across multiple specialist capabilities.
“The Australian Defence Force and the Armed Forces of the Philippines have a unique and special long-standing relationship which has continued to deepen since the establishment of the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Program in 2019.”
Mine Warfare Clearance Diving Officer Lieutenant Elliot Creagh, who took part in the explosive ordinance disposal and mine countermeasures component, said the training was a great way to learn about the capabilities from the Philippine Navy.
“‘Sama Sama’ means ‘togetherness’ in Tagalog and while this exercise takes place over two weeks at over a dozen different geographically dispersed platforms and locations, it’s really helped to enhance the participating force’s ability to work together,” he said.
“I look forward to working with both the Philippines Navy and US divers in future exercises and operations as we continue to grow our understanding and awareness of each other’s capabilities, policy and tactics, techniques and procedures.”
