Minister for Defence Materiel Jason Clare has met with Australian soldiers undertaking their final training before their deployment to Afghanistan early next year. 

Soldiers from Mentoring Task Force Four (MTF-4) are undertaking their Mission Rehearsal Exercise at the Wide Bay Training Area in Queensland. 

Mr Clare met with the soldiers and was briefed on their training and equipment. 

This Mission Rehearsal Exercise is the final and most realistic part of the training Australian soldiers undertake before they are deployed to Afghanistan. 

“It is designed to prepare soldiers for what they might face in Afghanistan,” Mr Clare said. 

“The training area includes a replica Afghan village and involves Afghan-speaking people training with them to make the experience as realistic as possible.” 

This is the second time Minister Clare has met with soldiers from MTF-4. 

In September he met with MTF-4 soldiers at Enoggera Barracks in Brisbane and was briefed on kitting arrangements and deployment preparations. 

Media contact: Korena Flanagan - 02 6277 7620