President
Barack Obama: ''The United States is a Pacific power, and we are here to stay''
The Asia-Pacific region is now a "top
priority" of US security policy, President Barack Obama has said in a
speech to the Australian parliament.
Mr Obama insisted US spending cuts would not
affect the Asia-Pacific, saying the US is "here to stay".
His comments are seen as a challenge to China,
which is striving to be the main power in the region.
Mr Obama announced a plan on Wednesday to
station a full US Marine task force in Australia by 2016.
The measure will eventually see 2,500 US
personnel based in the north of the country.
Defining region
Chinese officials have so far remained quiet
on the issue, with a Foreign Ministry spokesman suggesting that installing US
Marines was not consistent with the goal of achieving a peaceful rise for the
continent.
China is locked in a territorial dispute with
allies of the US, including the Philippines and Taiwan, over island groupings
in the South China Sea.
Beijing has repeatedly insisted that it will
discuss the matter only with those countries directly involved, ruling out US
involvement.
But analysts say an increased US presence in
the area is bound to embolden its allies, and irritate Beijing.
Speaking in Canberra, Mr Obama said
Asia-Pacific countries would play a vital role in shaping the world in the 21st
Century.
"With most of the world's nuclear powers
and some half of humanity, Asia will largely define whether the century ahead
will be marked by conflict or co-operation, needless suffering or human
progress," he said.
The US has been slow to recover from an
economic slump, and the military is one area earmarked for major spending cuts.
With US troops leaving both Iraq and
Afghanistan after long engagements, there was speculation that the Americans
might also seek to play a low-key role across Asia.
But Mr Obama said: "As we end today's
wars, I have directed my national security team to make our presence and
missions in the Asia-Pacific a top priority.
"As a result, reductions in US defence
spending will not - I repeat, will not - come at the expense of the
Asia-Pacific."
He committed the US to playing a "larger
and long-term role in shaping this region", before adding that he was keen
to work with China.
"We've seen that China can be a partner, from
reducing tensions on the Korean peninsula to preventing proliferation," he
said.
"We'll seek more opportunities for
co-operation with Beijing, including greater communication between our
militaries, to promote understanding and avoid miscalculation."
Crocodile insurance
After his speech, the president flew from
Canberra to the northern city of Darwin, where many of the US military
personnel are likely to be based.
In a light-hearted end to his trip, Mr Obama,
the first sitting US president to visit the city, was given crocodile insurance
as a gift from a local politician.
"I have to admit when we reformed
healthcare in America, crocodile insurance is one thing we left out," he
joked in an address to about 2,000 soldiers.
The president has now left Australia on his
way to a regional summit on the Indonesian island of Bali.
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who
is also under pressure with domestic political issues, said the partnership
between Australia and the US had been a "bedrock of stability" in the
region.
Mr Obama's trip came as the two countries
marked the 60th anniversary of their military alliance.
BBC
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