Australia and the US are in talks to deepen their military co-­operation, with plans for new ­exercises on Australian soil ­including joint training with American army soldiers.

The proposed exercises with the US army would be modelled on the annual rotation of Marines through Darwin, and use a variety of military training areas including those in Queensland.

The Morrison and Biden ­administrations are also in the midst of delicate negotiations to build guided missiles in Australia using top-secret US technology, and store US weapons and equipment at Top End bases.

THE US military is flying in its own Covid-19 supplies to vaccinate troops operating in Darwin. 

Special mobile refrigeration and freezer systems filled with Covid-19 vaccines arrived at Robertson Barracks on the eve of the region’s largest war games, Talisman Sabre. 

More than 17,000 troops from Australia and across the world are in Queensland for the large-scale, bilateral military exercise between Australia and the US.

The Covid-19 vaccines arrived at RAAF Darwin and were distributed to Larrakeyah and Robertson Barracks medical facilities to vaccinate US service members in Australia’s Top End.

A US Marine who arrived in the NT on July 8 has tested positive to Covid-19.

The woman, aged 22, was undertaking a mandatory 14 day quarantine at Bladin Village when she tested positive in the past 24 hours.

She has mild symptoms and is under the care of NT Health at the NT Centre for National Resilience.

The total number of cases diagnosed in the Northern Territory is 190.

Documents about the controversial decision to allow foreign military personnel to quarantine in a Darwin CBD hotel will remain secret, with a Freedom of Information request rejected on the grounds they could be “susceptible to mischievous interpretation” and “lead to mistrust”.

dozens of pages of correspondence between senior officials — were "brought into existence" for a Cabinet sub-committee, making them exempt under the Information Act.

The department also said releasing the information would provide a "one-sided" view and that disclosure of alternative ideas floated in the correspondence would "likely lead to ill-informed debate" about the department's final decision.

With more than 2000 Marines in Australia's north, commander USMC Colonel David Banning says the force isn't just in the Top End to train, it's ready for action.

USMC Colonel David Banning insists his troops are ready for action.

The declaration comes as Defence Minister Peter Dutton hints that while maintaining peace is a "first priority", the visiting Darwin-based force could soon swell amid growing Indo-Pacific tension.

"As military members, it's our job to be prepared for the greatest range of what-if possible"