Personnel from the Australian Defence Force, US forces and the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) took part in the closing ceremony for Exercise Yama Sakura 91 in Chitose, Hokkaido and Asaka on September 10.
Based largely out of JGSDF Camp Higashi-Chitose, with force elements in Kumamoto, Asaka, Hawaii and Brisbane, the exercise focused on interoperability in a large-scale conflict simulation.
One of 18 personnel from each nation to receive a challenge coin from the commanders was 1st (Australian) Division contingent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance manager Captain Lewis Mikulic.
“This is my third Exercise Yama Sakura and this is the best one I have seen so far,” Captain Mikulic said.
‘The results of our interactions show the trust we’ve established between the JGSDF, US Army and the Australian Army.’
“This was a new level of daily coordination occurring between all three nations.
“We had a great understanding of what each other were doing and we were able to solve problems that we couldn’t solve individually.”
Apart from advances in operational understanding, personal relationships also grew.
Captain Mikulic, who studied Japanese at the ADF School of Languages in 2023, said the person-to-person aspect of the exercise was always a highlight.
“Every time I get to come over here and use my language skills it is really satisfying,” he said.
“The results of our interactions show the trust we’ve established between the JGSDF, US Army and the Australian Army.”
Exercise Yama Sakura was followed by Exercise Orient Shield, a field training activity Australia participated in for the second time.
