SYDNEY: US Marine Corps plans for a crisis-ready stockpile in Australia are part of a “growing US footprint” in the country and important for national security, Defense Minister Richard Marles said Wednesday.
The US Marines will include Australia in a global prepositioning program for weapons, ammunition and vehicles for the first time, AFP reported on Tuesday, citing tender documents.
An initial stockpile in Melbourne city will move to US warehouses at Australia’s Bandiana military base in rural Victoria.
“We are seeing a growing US footprint in Australia, that is important in terms of building our own military capability, but also it’s very important for Australia’s national security,” Marles told reporters in Western Australia.
“An American logistics footprint is part of its overall force posture on the continent,” he said.
