TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The 2023 Pacific Vanguard naval exercises are underway in waters near Guam this week, with vessels from South Korea once again joining Quad members Australia, Japan, and the U.S., the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said earlier this week.

The Pacific Vanguard Exercises, inaugurated in 2019, are designed for allied navies of the region to improve interoperability and practice “skills in maritime operations, anti-submarine warfare operations, air warfare operations, live-fire missile events, and advanced maneuvering scenarios,” according to a press release. This year’s exercises began on July 1 and will continue through Wednesday (July 12), reported Foreign Brief.

The primary ships taking part in this year’s exercises include the guided-missile destroyer USS Howard, Japan’s destroyer JS Shiranui, and South Korea’s destroyer ROKS Munmu the Great. This year, the Australian contingent is represented by advisors and tacticians on the watch floor of several vessels.

Although South Korea is not a member of the Quad, which also includes India, it is considered a Quadrilateral Security Dialogue Plus Member, and has a bilateral security pact with the U.S. As an important regional partner of the Quad, South Korea has participated in the Pacific Vanguard Exercises since they began five years ago.

"Cooperative engagements with our Allies during exercises like Pacific Vanguard are critical to ensuring we can stay a strong and effective interoperable force… A free and open Indo-Pacific is made possible by the relationships we build together during exercises like this one,”said the commanding officer of the USS Howard, Kenji Igawa.