Australia will join the annual Malabar naval exercise with Japan and the U.S. to be held off the Indian coast this year, according to statements from the South Asian country’s defense ministry and Australia’s defense minister.

The exercise will be held in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, along some of the world’s busiest trade routes, to "strengthen the coordination between the Navies,” India’s Ministry of Defence said in its statement. The drills have previously been held off the coast of Japan and off the coast of Guam in the Philippine sea.

The decision to include Australia in the exercise — the first time all members of the regional grouping known as the "Quad" will be engaged militarily — comes as Beijing and New Delhi are embroiled in their worst border standoff in four decades. The drills will take place at the end of this year.