Australia yesterday said it might allow the US to use its territory to operate long-range spy drones, as part of an increased US presence in the Asia-Pacific that has rankled China.
Washington and Canberra could also reportedly station US aircraft carriers and nuclear-powered attack submarines in the western Australian city of Perth, as part of a major expansion of military ties.
Under the expansion, the first US Marines out of a 2,500-strong deployment to Darwin in northern Australia are to arrive next month.
The marines plan has irked Beijing, but reassured some Asian countries who see it as a statement that Washington intends to stand up for its allies and interests in the region amid concerns about China’s increasing assertiveness.
Australian media carried reports yesterday, citing a Washington Post story that the US was considering using the Cocos Islands, atolls in the Indian Ocean off northwest Australia, to launch unmanned surveillance aircraft.
The reports said the Cocos, which has a population of about 600, would replace the present US Indian Ocean base of Diego Garcia, which the US leases from Britain and which is due to be mothballed in 2016.
The Washington Post also said that Canberra was considering upgrading Perth’s Stirling naval base “for deployments and operations in Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean by the US Navy.”
The upgrade would reportedly help Stirling service large surface warships, including US aircraft carriers, and attack submarines.
Australian Defense Minister Stephen Smith said the key priorities in closer US cooperation were the rotation of marines through Darwin, greater air access and more use of the HMAS Stirling base in Perth.
Smith said the use of the Cocos Islands was a longer-term option for closer Australia-US engagement, and its airstrip would need to be upgraded before it could be used.
“Cocos is a possibility ... it’s a long-term prospect and should be treated as such,” Smith told ABC radio.
Asked about Smith’s comments, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei (洪磊) did not directly address the possibility of US drones using Australian territory.
However, he told reporters in Beijing that all countries in the Asia-Pacific region should “uphold the new security concept of equality, common development, coordination and mutual benefit, and try to uphold safety for all.”
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