Counter-Terrorism Exercise Highlights Regional Cooperation

Australia and Thailand will hold a combined counter-terrorism military exercise in Thailand from 5 to 9 July, Defence Minister Robert Hill and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer announced today.

"The Australian Government places the highest possible priority on fighting terrorism at home and abroad, including with regional partners," the Ministers said.

"Exercise Wyvern Sun will involve a special recovery operation in response to a mock terrorist incident involving Australian hostages. It will provide valuable counter-terrorism training to Australian and Thai Special Forces and follows a similar exercise which was held in Thailand in 2001.

"Australia and Thailand are committed to working together to refine their counter-terrorism capabilities and expertise, in keeping with the 2002 Australian-Thai Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation to Combat International Terrorism.

"The exercise will advance Australia and Thailand's shared goal of defeating terrorism and demonstrates our willingness to work together to address this threat."

The Ministers said exercise Wyvern Sun followed the success of the inaugural Regional Special Forces Counter-Terrorism Conference held at Bowral earlier this month.

This conference brought together senior special forces and counter-terrorism experts from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, China, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Japan, Brunei, Thailand and the United States. It provided the opportunity for senior officials from throughout the region to establish links and share information about national counter-terrorism response mechanisms and the capabilities of special forces counter-terrorism units.

In parallel to the military exercise, the Government will conduct an exercise in Australia, based on the same mock terrorist incident, to test Australia's crisis response mechanisms.

The Departments of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Prime Minister and Cabinet, Defence and Attorney General's, as well the Australian Federal Police and Australian intelligence agencies, will be involved in a simulated emergency task force response.

Media inquiries: Media inquiries: Chris Kenny (Mr Downer's Office) 02 6277 7500. Catherine Fitzpatrick (Senator Hill's Office )02 6277 7800