China attack ‘shows the dangers faced by navy’, says Richard Marles

Richard Marles has warned of the increased risks facing Australia’s navy as the ship at the centre of the recent sonar incident with a Chinese vessel finally returned to Australian waters.

HMAS Toowoomba at Garden Island, south of Perth. Picture: Justin Benson-Cooper / The West Australian

Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles has warned of the increased risks facing Australia’s navy as the ship at the centre of the recent sonar incident with a Chinese vessel finally returned to Australian waters.

HMAS Toowoomba returned to the Stirling naval base at Garden Island, south of Perth, on Wednesday after a three-month deployment.

Three divers from the ship were injured last month when a Chinese warship blasted its underwater sonar while they were working to remove fishing nets from the Toowoomba’s propellers. The Toowoomba was sailing through the Taiwan Strait at the time, having just finished a training exercise with Japan in the East China Sea.

Mr Marles said the incident was a reminder of the difficult and dangerous circumstances facing Australia’s navy. “It is clear that this is work which is becoming increasingly risky. We understand that, but we will continue to do this undeterred,” he said.

The chief of the Royal Australian Navy, Vice Admiral Mark Hammond, said he had spoken to the ship’s dive team on Wednesday and they were “doing great”.

But he was critical of the Chinese navy’s actions in the incident, warning it could have led to more serious injuries.

“There’s a reason we have processes and protocols which are internationally recognised,” he said. “It was unsafe, it was unprofessional.”

Mr Marles said the crew of the Toowoomba had been engaged in upholding the regional rules-based order that was at the heart of Australia’s national interest.

“This has been an eventful deployment, and we could not be more proud of this crew and the way in which they have worn our nation’s uniform and served Australia,” he said.

The incident involving the HMAS Toowoomba was followed in recent days by a clash between Chinese and Philippines vessels in the South China Sea. A Chinese ship reportedly blasted a Philippine supply boat with a high-pressure water cannon, disabling its engines in the process.