FILE PHOTO: Australia's Defence Minister Marise Payne arrives for the second day of a NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, July 12, 2018. Tatyana Zenkovich/Pool via REUTERS
SYDNEY (Reuters) - China's navy will join 26 countries in military exercises off Australia's north coast this month, but not live-fire drills, Australia's defence minister said on Wednesday at a time of strained ties between the two nations.
The naval exercises are being hosted by Australia and will also include its major ally the United States, which expelled China in May from its military training around Hawaii - a response to what it sees as Beijing's militarisation of islands in the South China Sea.
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