US military plans to establish weapons storage in Australia

The US army plans to establish a stockpile of ready-to-use military equipment, including weapons, on the southeast coast of Australia, according to information mentioned in tender documents and confirmed by officials to AFP.

This location, out of range of most Chinese missiles, would be a first for US Marines in Australia. The United States is thus seeking to take advantage of geography to counter Beijing’s military strengthening, according to experts.

The US Marines have been prepositioning military equipment around the world since the Cold War, for example using floating warehouses or caves in Norway where weapons, ammunition and vehicles capable of supporting thousands of soldiers in combat are stored.

A first land storage in the Asia-Pacific region must be established this year in the Philippines, near possible points of friction in the South China Sea.

Documents released in June by the US Navy detail larger storage coming to Australia, mentioning $30 million allocated to build warehouses and offices in Victoria for “advanced critical supply”.

According to these documents, the stock will first be stored in Melbourne before being transferred to American buildings which are to be built next year on an Australian military base in Bandiana. The site is expected to reach full capacity in 2028.

Canberra does not allow foreign military bases on its soil, but has concluded a security alliance with the United States and welcomes more and more American forces on “rotation” on Australian bases.

According to documents seen, the US Navy is using a global defense contractor to recruit around 110 engineers, mechanics and materiel and security specialists to manage Australia’s stockpile, which includes “heavy weapons”.

“Marine Corps activities in Australia contribute to integrated global logistics support by ensuring the operational availability of materiel and equipment for operations and exercises in the Indo-Pacific region,” the Marine Corps Pacific said in a statement. communicated to AFP.

A spokesperson declined to comment on details of the contract but said the equipment would be maintained at a “high state of readiness.” The terms of the contract and the operation of the facility will be implemented in close coordination with the Australian Department of Defence.

“These activities improve responsiveness, strengthen interoperability with allies and partners, and support a range of missions in the Indo-Pacific region,” the press release added.

Asked by AFP, the Australian Ministry of Defense did not respond at this stage.

The American base of Guam vulnerable

The Pentagon has asked Congress for $500 million for 2027 to improve the prepositioning of equipment and fuel in the Asia-Pacific region, with the aim of deterring China.

According to a report published this week by the Australian think tank Lowy Institute, Beijing has the capacity to strike northern Australia with ballistic missiles deployed from its outposts in the South China Sea.

According to the Lowy Institute’s director of international security, Sam Roggeveen, this was probably “taken into consideration” in the choice to position a military stockpile in the southeast of the country.

“Once these facilities are operational, they would constitute obvious targets for China,” he commented to AFP.

The increase in American personnel and equipment in Australia also represents “a major change in Australian policy, linking Australia much more closely to the strategic objectives of the United States in the region”, he notes.

Today, some 2,000 American Marines train six months a year in northern Australia, in the city of Darwin.

For John Blaxland, professor of international security at the Australian National University, the country’s geographic location has “increasing importance” given concerns about the vulnerability of the US military base on Guam in the Pacific.

“Barring a massive increase in Australian defense spending, … facilitating increased US investment in Australian real estate is widely seen as the most prudent approach,” he said.

AFP