[quote]
Australia has agreed to host a full US Marine task force in the coming years, Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced at a news conference with US President Barack Obama in Canberra.
She said about 250 US Marines would arrive next year, eventually being built up to 2,500 personnel.
The deployment is being seen as a move to counter China's growing influence.
But Mr Obama said the US was "stepping up its commitment to the entire Asia-Pacific", not excluding China.
"The main message that I've said, not only publicly but also privately to China, is that with their rise comes increased responsibility," he said.
"It is important for them to play by the rules of the road."
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin questioned whether the move was in keeping with the region's peaceful development. "It may not be quite appropriate to intensify and expand military alliances and may not be in the interest of countries within this region," he was quoted as saying by AFP news agency.
The Global Times, a newspaper produced by the Communist Party-controlled People's Daily group, has been much more bellicose, says the BBC's Damian Grammaticas in Beijing.
An editorial warned it was "certain" that if "Australia uses its military bases to help the US harm Chinese interests, then Australia itself will be caught in the crossfire".
Luo Yuan, a senior officer at the People's Liberation Army's Academy of Military Sciences told the paper that while neither the US or China wanted to start a war, "if China's core interests such as its sovereignty, national security and unity are intruded on, a military conflict will be unavoidable".
Alliance honoured
The US president flew into Canberra from this weekend's Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (Apec) forum in Honolulu.
The visit comes as the two countries mark a 60-year security alliance.
Ms Gillard said about 250 Marines would be deployed on a rotational basis in northern Australia from next year.
"Australia will welcome deployments of a company-size rotation of 200 to 250 Marines in the Northern Territory for around six months at a time," she said.
"Over a number of years we intend to build on this relationship in a staged way to a full force of around 2,500 personnel, that is a full Marine air-ground task force."
Analysts said the deployment was the biggest in Australia since World War II.
Mr Obama said the deployment would allow the US to "meet the demands of a lot of partners in the region" in terms of training, exercises and "security architecture".
Later in his visit the US leader is due to visit a memorial in Darwin to honour US and Australian soldiers killed during World War II.
Mr Obama has twice cancelled visits to Australia in the past - in March 2010 as he worked to pass healthcare reform legislation and then in June the same year amid the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
After his stop in Darwin, Mr Obama flies to Indonesia for a summit of Asian leaders. [/quote]
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15739995[/url]
good
When the kangaroos take over they're going to need all the help they can get
Sounds fine. It's only 250, and they are our allies after all. Besides, the ANZUS Pact allows this kind of thing, no?
China is pretty isolationist and generally stick to their own thing militarily. If anything the only thing they want to influence is economics, why are the Americans doing this? because they want a better foothold in SE Asia. It will just inflame the region and piss people off. That being said nothing will happen China and others will protest but that's about it. I'm surprised the Australians agreed to this, there's pretty much nothing in it for them except for a page in the US's goodbooks.
I still see these military bases as a remnant of colonialism by increasing its sphere of influence/power.
Was this thread already posted? Or am I missing something here?
Marines banned in Australia.
[QUOTE=Megafanx13;33300646]Sounds fine. It's only 250, and they are our allies after all. Besides, the ANZUS Pact allows this kind of thing, no?[/QUOTE]
I think that pact is kinda dead or outdated, New Zealand was kicked out by Washington in the 1980s over its anti-nuclear stance, and it was created in 1950 because of the threat of the cold war and the USSR.
Do they get training to serve upside down?
[QUOTE=-n3o-;33300787]I think that pact is kinda dead or outdated, New Zealand was kicked out by Washington in the 1980s over its anti-nuclear stance, and it was created in 1950 because of the threat of the cold war and the USSR.[/QUOTE]
Most people into international politics did a double-take when Howard invoked the ANZUS treaty to legitimate the Afghanistan conflict, because it was so disused
[editline]17th November 2011[/editline]
[QUOTE=-n3o-;33300733]Was this thread already posted? Or am I missing something here?[/QUOTE]
The plan itself was already posted (except the bit about ramping up to 2,500 troops), but this piece is about it being announced by a Gillard-Obama joint conference
Don't the marines already enjoy fucking with people with camel spiders? Love to see what they're gonna do with Australian spiders.
Why are we deploying there, and 2500 troops? What the fuck?
[QUOTE=faze;33301587]Why are we deploying there, and 2500 troops? What the fuck?[/QUOTE]
[quote]Mr Obama said the deployment would allow the US to "meet the demands of a lot of partners in the region" in terms of training, exercises and "security architecture".[/quote]
[QUOTE=faze;33301587]Why are we deploying there, and 2500 troops? What the fuck?[/QUOTE]
To set up the infrastructure as a back-up base in SE Asia, and to start the process of putting of containing the most populous Islamic state on the planet
[editline]17th November 2011[/editline]
[QUOTE=-n3o-;33301595]"meet the demands of a lot of partners in the region"
"security architecture"[/QUOTE]
Translation = train Australians and Indonesians how to 'stabilize' their domestic situations, and hedge against Indonesia going tits up Islamo-crazy and join up with the pseudo-anti west bloc
[QUOTE=faze;33301587]Why are we deploying there, and 2500 troops? What the fuck?[/QUOTE]
For the same reason we have bases in Japan and Europe- logistics.
[QUOTE=Contag;33301605]To set up the infrastructure as a back-up base in SE Asia, and to start the process of putting of containing the most populous Islamic state on the planet
[editline]17th November 2011[/editline]
Translation = train Australians and Indonesians how to 'stabilize' their domestic situations, and hedge against Indonesia going tits up Islamo-crazy and join up with the pseudo-anti west bloc[/QUOTE]
Wait I am sorry, but what the fuck are you on about?
[QUOTE=-n3o-;33300733]Was this thread already posted? Or am I missing something here?[/QUOTE]
It was mentioned (rumoured?) at some event recently and an article was posted about it, its now being officially made public because Obama is in Australia. This one seems to have more details than the one previously.
[QUOTE=-n3o-;33301651]Wait I am sorry, but what the fuck are you on about?[/QUOTE]
What are you specifically referring to?
[QUOTE=Contag;33301605]To set up the infrastructure as a back-up base in SE Asia, and to start the process of putting of containing the most populous Islamic state on the planet
[editline]17th November 2011[/editline]
Translation = train Australians and Indonesians how to 'stabilize' their domestic situations, and hedge against Indonesia going tits up Islamo-crazy and join up with the pseudo-anti west bloc[/QUOTE]
Im pretty sure this is more to do with China. Thats whats stated in the OP and far more likely.
[QUOTE=N-12_Aden;33301877]Im pretty sure this is more to do with China. Thats whats stated in the OP and far more likely.[/QUOTE]
It's also about protecting the strategic interest the United States has in Australia, considering we supply a huge amount of resources to China
but it's certainly not a staging base in case of a US-China war
[editline]17th November 2011[/editline]
26.6% percent of our exports were to China in 2010
If American troops are stationed in Australia then its only fair that Australian troops are stationed in America. I'd love to read about a unit marching through Nowhere, Nebraska with the flag hoisted high.
Can't say whether this is good or bad
To me it just seems rather...pointless?
[QUOTE=znk666;33302634]Can't say whether this is good or bad
To me it just seems rather...pointless?[/QUOTE]
[quote]At December 2008, [B]Australia had the world’s largest economic resources of brown coal, mineral sands (rutile and zircon), nickel, silver, uranium, zinc and lead. [/B]The country also ranks among the top six worldwide for resources of bauxite, black coal, copper, gold, industrial diamond, iron ore, ilmenite, lithium, manganese ore, niobium, tantalum, vanadium and antimony.[/quote]
[QUOTE=Eat Children;33302530]If American troops are stationed in Australia then its only fair that Australian troops are stationed in America. I'd love to read about a unit marching through Nowhere, Nebraska with the flag hoisted high.[/QUOTE]
It's not about fairness. Australia does not share any mutual strategic interest with the United States in the western hemisphere, and even if they did a base would be wholly unnecessary in the first place because North America is home to two respected and allied military powers, one of which is among the largest and most effective in the world.
[QUOTE=Snuffy;33302702]It's not about fairness. Australia does not share any mutual strategic interest with the United States in the western hemisphere, and even if they did a base would be wholly unnecessary in the first place because North America is home to two respected and allied military powers, one of which is among the largest and most effective in the world.[/QUOTE]
The only reason we'd ever have a base on American soil is so our military command can walk down the road to say hello and have a few beers
that is, as you said, there is no point
I dont know guys i saw this movie once with Wesley Snipes where Australia and China fight the US and Canada over Hawaii. maybe this is a preemptive strike.
[QUOTE=Tunak Mk. II;33307589]I dont know guys i saw this movie once with Wesley Snipes where Australia and China fight the US and Canada over Hawaii. maybe this is a preemptive strike.[/QUOTE]
Why would Canada fight Australia? Already this plot seems more backwards than Homefront.
[QUOTE=Hidole555;33307731]Why would Canada fight Australia? Already this plot seems more backwards than Homefront.[/QUOTE]
It never came down to war because they fought with sports instead of guns.
The movie was called Futuresport and I'm pretty sure it's on Netflix
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytq1sEZgWA0[/media]
Sounds like some marines are gonna be having a lot of fun down under.
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