SYDNEY, THE NUSANTARA POST – The United States plans to deploy up to six nuclear-capable B-52 bombers to an air base in northern Australia.
This was informed by the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) on Monday (31/10). The deployment plan was put forward amid rising tensions with Beijing.
A special facility for the bombers will be set up at a remote Australian air force base at Tindal, about 300km south of Darwin, the capital of Australia’s Northern Territory, ABC’s Four Corners program reported, citing US documents.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his country had ties to the US in defense alliances “from time to time.”
“Sure, there are visits to Australia, including in Darwin, there are US Marines, who are stationed there on a rotating basis,” Albanese told a news conference.
The Northern Territory has frequently hosted military collaborations with the United States. Thousands of US Marines take turns in the region each year for joint training and training.
The program began when the US government was led by President Barack Obama. The office of Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The United States has drawn up detailed plans for what it calls a “squadron operations facility” for use during the dry season in the Northern Territory, a maintenance center adjoining a parking area for B-52s, the ABC reported.
The ability to deploy long-range bombers to Australia sends a strong message to adversaries about Washington’s ability to project air power, the US Air Force said in the report.
Last year, the United States, Britain and Australia struck a security deal that would give Australia the technology to deploy nuclear-powered submarines, much to China’s fury.
Placing the B-52, which has a combat range of about 14,000 km, in Australia would serve as a warning to Beijing, said Becca Wasser, senior research fellow at the Center for a New American based in Washington, D.C. Security, to ABC.
Wasser said the warning came at a time of heightened concern over a possible attack by Beijing on Taiwan.
This year, the US deployed four B-52s to the Andersen Air Force base in Guam (Reuters/ABC/Ant/KBI/TNP)
