First US Marines arrive in Australia

Deployment appears to be sending a signal to China:

AUSTRALIA: The first batch of an expected 2,500 US Marines to be deployed in Australia began work yesterday as Washington bolsters its presence in a strategically vital region, to the irritation of China.

Some 200 Marines touched down in tropical Darwin overnight as part of an enhanced defence cooperation outlined during a visit by US President Barack Obama in November that rankled Beijing.

The troops are in the Northern Territory on a six-month rotational basis and will be based at Robertson Barracks on the outskirts of the city, building to some 2,500 by 2016-17. AFP