Determined Tiger
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In April, the U.S. Marine Corps Command will start moving reinforcements to a military base in Australia, the American newspaper Marine Corps Times reports. Sergei Sayenko has some details.
About 200 Hawaii-based U.S. marines will be sent to the Robertson Barracks base in Darwin in northern Australia under last Novembers bilateral deal providing for a broader U.S. military presence on the continent. Signed during U.S. President Barack Obamas visit to Australia and preceded by his talks with Prime Minister Julia Gillard at the end of last year and after, the agreement will bring the U.S. troop contingent in Australia to 2,500 marines by the year 2016. In addition, Australian airfields and ports will accommodate a greater number of U.S. aircraft and vessels. More joint military exercises are also being planned.
The Obama-Gillard November deal, the largest ever military pact between Canberra and Washington since the Second World War, will considerably strengthen Americas positions in Asia and the Pacific. With $1.2 billion dollars worth of supplies reaching the United States annually via the Pacific Ocean, the region is vital to the national security interests of the United States.
Most analysts point out that the U.S.-Australian defense pact actually takes aim at China and is part of the effort to stop the spread of Beijings soft power over Southeast Asia. Others see it as a shift in foreign policy emphasis from the troubled Middle East towards Asia and the Pacific. President Obama has often repeated lately that the United States is and will always be a Pacific nation.
Australia, a major regional player, has been given an important role in Washingtons plans. Canberra and Beijing arent close friends, nor are they foes. China is Australias biggest trade partner, but its rising military might is being perceived by Australia as a potential threat to its national security, all the more so considering Beijings territorial claims on a number of islands in the South China Sea.
The United States has been keeping a close watch on Chinas growing economic and political influence. It would be wrong to assume that Beijings opinion is being ignored. During his November visit to Australia, President Obama welcomed the increasing role of a peaceful and prospering China as the worlds fastest-growing nation and home to half the global economy.
Quite often, however, real steps clash with the official rhetoric. The Canberra pact designed to further U.S. military expansion in Asia and the Pacific is glaring proof of that.
About 200 Hawaii-based U.S. marines will be sent to the Robertson Barracks base in Darwin in northern Australia under last Novembers bilateral deal providing for a broader U.S. military presence on the continent. Signed during U.S. President Barack Obamas visit to Australia and preceded by his talks with Prime Minister Julia Gillard at the end of last year and after, the agreement will bring the U.S. troop contingent in Australia to 2,500 marines by the year 2016. In addition, Australian airfields and ports will accommodate a greater number of U.S. aircraft and vessels. More joint military exercises are also being planned.
The Obama-Gillard November deal, the largest ever military pact between Canberra and Washington since the Second World War, will considerably strengthen Americas positions in Asia and the Pacific. With $1.2 billion dollars worth of supplies reaching the United States annually via the Pacific Ocean, the region is vital to the national security interests of the United States.
Most analysts point out that the U.S.-Australian defense pact actually takes aim at China and is part of the effort to stop the spread of Beijings soft power over Southeast Asia. Others see it as a shift in foreign policy emphasis from the troubled Middle East towards Asia and the Pacific. President Obama has often repeated lately that the United States is and will always be a Pacific nation.
Australia, a major regional player, has been given an important role in Washingtons plans. Canberra and Beijing arent close friends, nor are they foes. China is Australias biggest trade partner, but its rising military might is being perceived by Australia as a potential threat to its national security, all the more so considering Beijings territorial claims on a number of islands in the South China Sea.
The United States has been keeping a close watch on Chinas growing economic and political influence. It would be wrong to assume that Beijings opinion is being ignored. During his November visit to Australia, President Obama welcomed the increasing role of a peaceful and prospering China as the worlds fastest-growing nation and home to half the global economy.
Quite often, however, real steps clash with the official rhetoric. The Canberra pact designed to further U.S. military expansion in Asia and the Pacific is glaring proof of that.
