Talisman Sabre 2023 military exercise reveals anxious Australian mindset
今年美澳主导的“护身军刀”演习从7月22日持续到8月4日，地理范围和参演规模均为历届最大，彰显美澳日益膨胀的冷战思维。
This year’s US-Australian led Talisman Sabre 2023 military exercise, which took place from July 22 to August 4, was the largest in geographical range and participation scale to date, demonstrating the expanding Cold War mentality of the two nations.
近来，澳大利亚积极配合美国扩大军事存在，包括在太平洋岛国部署军队和开发海军基地。美澳如此急切地在南太搅动风浪，一边声称所谓“维护自由开放的印太”，一边却挑战核不扩散规范，挑动地区紧张局势。
Recently, Australia has actively cooperated with the expansion of the US military presence, including the deployment of troops and naval bases in Pacific island nations. By stirring up waves in the South Pacific, the US and Australia claim to “safeguard a free and open Indo-Pacific” while simultaneously challenging non-proliferation norms and escalating regional tensions.
然而，美澳反复强调两国特殊关系，但象征意义大于实际水平。“护身军刀”演习期间，美国海军“独立”级濒海战斗舰“堪培拉”号在澳大利亚悉尼港举行入役仪式，是首艘在外国港口入役的美国军舰。这场隆重的仪式具有极强表演性。
However, the repeated emphasis on the special relationship between the US and Australia is more symbolic than substantive. During the military exercise, the USS Canberra (LCS-30) held a commissioning ceremony in Sydney Harbor – the first time a US warship has been commissioned in a foreign port. This grand event is more theatrical than substantive.
一方面，美国以舰名纪念1942年在支援美国对日作战时被击沉的澳大利亚“堪培拉”号重巡洋舰，追忆双方久远的历史和亲缘关系，借此展现所谓的“价值观共识”和“对盟友的长期承诺”，本质上是美国为了把盟友绑上战车以转移军事霸权成本，而卖给盟友一点面子来维持联盟凝聚力的噱头。
On the one hand, the US commemorates the Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra, sunk in 1942 while supporting US operations against Japan, as a symbol of shared history and kinship. This showcases a so-called “consensus of values” and “long-term commitment to allies.”The US aims to bind its allies to its military agenda to shift the cost of maintaining military hegemony while offering a face-saving gesture to sustain alliance cohesion.
另一方面，美军“堪培拉”号濒海战斗舰是在西澳大利亚设计的，双方还表示未来美国核潜艇将在澳进行时间更长的常规访问，彰显两国海军合作将具有更强的对抗性与针对性。美国并不掩饰此次军演的威慑目的，美海军部长托罗曾宣称演习要“向中国传递信息”，可以看出，美国所谓“基于规则的秩序”口号根本上是服务于美式霸权的。
On the other hand, the USS Canberra was designed in Western Australia, and both countries have indicated that future extended visits by US nuclear submarines will occur in Australia. This highlights a stronger confrontational and targeted nature of naval cooperation between the two nations. The US does not hide the deterrent purpose of this military exercise, as the US Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro proclaimed that the exercise is meant to send a message to China. This indicates that the US slogan of a “rules-based order” fundamentally serves American hegemony.
自2017年以来，澳大利亚政府在对美追随和对华制衡的道路上越走越远。澳有学者称，澳大利亚陷入了“牺牲自身利益满足美国利益”的战略病态之中。如今，美国将澳大利亚作为亚太的前沿基地，演习区域几乎覆盖澳全境，澳大利亚不但要承担巨大的经济、环境和公共卫生压力，还面临被盟友卷入战争的联盟困境和声誉危机。
Since 2017, the Australian government has increasingly followed the US and sought to balance China. Some Australian scholars argue that Australia has fallen into a “strategic pathology of sacrificing its interests to satisfy US interests.” Now, the US positions Australia as a front-line base in the Asia-Pacific region, with exercise areas covering almost the entire country. Australia faces significant economic, environmental, and public health pressures and confronts the dilemma of being dragged into conflicts by its allies and reputational crises.
然而，澳大利亚政府选择继续为美国的“印太战略”摇旗呐喊，坚称“没有比美国更好的朋友”，将国家发展的全部战略筹码押注在与美国的联盟关系之上。如今，澳大利亚除了要为“奥库斯”核潜艇合作支付高额的账单外，今后面对美国越来越多的霸权要求、霸道作派，也只能硬着头皮一一应允。
However, the Australian government has chosen to continue waving the flag and cheering on the US’ “Indo-Pacific strategy,” placing all its strategic chips on its alliance relationship with the US. Today, besides having to pay a hefty bill for the AUKUS submarine cooperation, Australia will also have no choice but to reluctantly comply with more and more hegemonic demands and domineering behavior from the US in the future.
澳大利亚之所以走到这一步，源于其固有的“西方价值观认同”的文化傲慢，再加上时与势的变化令其心态更加焦躁，必然导致决策上的短视和战略上的偏执。
Australia has reached this point due to its inherent cultural arrogance of “Western values identification,” coupled with the changing times and circumstances that have made its mentality even more anxious, inevitably leading to shortsighted decision-making and strategic inflexibility.
