Space Travel News
SUPERPOWERS
U.S., Australia deepen relationship amid growing China threat
U.S., Australia deepen relationship amid growing China threat
by Darryl Coote
Washington DC (UPI) Aug 7, 2024

The United States and Australia took steps Tuesday to deepen their relationship, primarily militarily, as the Biden administration has sought to bolster ties with allies in the Indo-Pacific amid growing global competition with China.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Antony Blinken and Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin hosted their Australian counterparts for the 34th Australia-U.S. Ministerial Consultations in Annapolis, Md.

A joint statement following the meeting states there was a recommitment to "promoting a prosperous and peaceful" Indo-Pacific region from the United States and Australia, with both highlighting actions they have taken to deepen their military ties since President Joe Biden hosted Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for a state dinner in October.

During a press conference, Austin said they continue to deepen their force posture cooperation that includes upgrading air bases, operating from new locations and establishing a new logistic location all on the Oceanic island nation.

"We're also increasing the presence of rotational U.S. forces in Australia, and all this will mean more maritime patrol aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft operating from bases across northern Australia," he said.

"It will also mean more frequent rotational bomber deployments."

Austin announced a "doubling down" of the United States' defense industrial base cooperation that will see by the end of the year two agreements signed between the countries: one for the manufacturing of Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems in Australia by 2025 and the other concerning the co-production, co-sustainment and co-development of a Precision Strike Missile in the country.

"American force posture now in Australia involves every domain: land, sea, air, cyber and space," Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Richard Marles said, as he explained the presence of the U.S. forces in Australia provides them "an enormous opportunity" to work with regional partners, such as Japan, another country that the Biden administration has worked to foster closer military ties to.

Though China was rarely mentioned, it loomed over the meeting as the Asian nation has provided democracies with the greatest challenge in the region. Its growing assertiveness that has resulted in skirmishes with neighbors, in particular the Philippines, has been a cause for concern, as is Beijing's determination to reclaim Taiwan -- a self-governing democratic island -- by force if necessary.

Australia's foreign minister, Penny Wong, explained their discussions Tuesday surrounded working together to ensure the Indo-Pacific is peaceful, open and prosperous, adding their discussions are "an investment in the protection of democracy."

Blinken said through the meeting, they discussed threats to their shared vision for the region and agreed upon the importance "of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Seas, the East China Seas, and countering any attempts at coercion."

"We're united on the need to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and to resist any actions that escalate tensions or undermine the status quo," he said.

Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
SUPERPOWERS
Former US marine Paul Whelan: pawn in US-Russia standoff
Washington (AFP) Aug 1, 2024
Paul Whelan, a former US marine released by Russia after serving several years of a long jail sentence for espionage, became an unwitting pawn in a historic diplomatic standoff between Moscow and Washington. The 54-year-old was detained in Moscow in 2018 - allegedly with a cache of classified documents - and then sentenced to 16 years in a remote Russian penal colony for espionage. Before Turkey's government announced his release as part of a major prisoner swap Thursday, Whelan was losing ho ... read more

SUPERPOWERS
SUPERPOWERS
Key technologies driving NASA's Mars exploration discussed at conference

NASA picks next 4 crew members for simulated Mars mission in Texas

NASA rover finds pure sulfur crystals in Martian rock

AI enhancements drive Mars rover discoveries

SUPERPOWERS
Creating a Lunar Biorepository to protect Earth's biodiversity

Graphene Discovered in Lunar Soil Sample from Chang'e 5 Mission

UK Space Agency selects finalists for Lunar Water Purification technologies

Chinese lunar probe finds water in Moon samples

SUPERPOWERS
Ariel's Carbon Dioxide Indicates Potential Subsurface Ocean on Uranus' Moon

Spacecraft to swing by Earth, Moon on path to Jupiter

A new insight into Jupiter's shrinking Great Red Spot

Queen's University Belfast Researchers Investigate Mysterious Brightening of Chiron

SUPERPOWERS
NASA's Landolt Mission to Enhance Precision in Star Brightness Measurement

Webb Spots Closest Super-Jupiter Paving Way for New Exoplanet Research

Stellar magnetism may influence exoplanet habitability

New Magnetic Criteria Suggest Only Two Exoplanets Potentially Habitable

SUPERPOWERS
Northrop Grumman rocket boosters power successful Space Force launch

Space Perspective Unveils First Marine Spaceport

Omega Propulsion Service Enhances Satellite Operations

Space Force Endorses Orbit Fab's RAFTI as Standard for Satellite Refueling

SUPERPOWERS
Shenzhou XVIII Crew Conducts Emergency Drill on Tiangong Space Station

Beijing Unveils 'Rocket Street' to Boost Commercial Space Sector

Shenzhou XVII Crew Shares Post-Mission Insights with Media

Shenzhou XVIII Crew Successfully Completes Second Spacewalk

SUPERPOWERS
ESA prepares for close encounter with Asteroid Apophis in 2029

A bird? A plane? Meteor grazes skies above New York City: NASA

Dark Comets May Constitute a Major Portion of Near-Earth Objects

Hera's Propulsion System Passes Critical Leak Test

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.