A recent survey suggests U.S. Marines are being welcomed with open arms by residents of Australia’s Northern Territory.

There’s been a steady build-up of Marines in Darwin, Australia, since 2012.

On May 1, with the Marines’ rotational force poised to reach its target of 2,500 troops, the Australian government released a report showing that Darwin leaders and residents have a generally positive view of the U.S. military presence.

Auditing firm KPMG’s “US Force Posture Initiatives (USFPI) Social and Economic Impact Study” involved a telephone survey of 408 locals and meetings with 27 key representatives from business, government and the community.

It shows 51% of people there have positive feelings about the U.S. troops with only 6% responding negatively.

That’s a contrast with Okinawa, Japan, for example, where criminal behavior periodically works against the U.S. cause, as was the case on April 13, when a U.S. sailor apparently fatally stabbed a Japanese woman and then killed himself, according to Japan’s Foreign Ministry.

PRIME Minister Scott Morrison’s campaign caravan has rolled into Darwin for the first time this election.

Mr Morrison will spend today spruiking the Coalition’s defence package, which will include the introduction of a “Local Industry Capability Plan” requirement for all significant Defence infrastructure projects.

Under the plan, all tenderers for defence infrastructure construction jobs valued at more than $7.5 million will need to show how they will engage local businesses in the project.

While in Darwin, Mr Morrison is expected to visit the newly-arrived Marine contingent and announce the rotation will reach its full strength by July.

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The eighth Marine rotation to Darwin will see 2500 American soldiers posted in the Top End, up from 1700 now

A new contingent of US Marines are headed to Darwin in the eighth rotation of American troops training down under.

The ramp-up from 1700 Marines expected to arrive this year to 2500 will be the first time US troop numbers reach the full planned complement.

The Morrison government says the increased US military presence was the result of Australia's strong alliance and friendship with the US.

This year, the Marines will participate in multiple training activities with Australian troops, including a new humanitarian assistance and disaster response segment.

Aircraft deploying to Australia’s Northern Territory include 10 MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors, four AH-1Z Vipers and three UH-1Y Venom helicopters, a Marine spokesman said.

Aircraft deploying for the rotation include 10 MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors, four AH-1Z Vipers and three UH-1Y Venom helicopters, Marine spokesman 1st Lt. Colin Kennard said in an email.

The aircraft represent “the most capable Aviation Combat Element” sent to Darwin since the rotational deployments began in 2011, he said.

“These aircraft increase the training value for MRF-D activities and increase our ability to respond to contingencies within the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.

To facilitate operations for the U.S.A. helicopters, temporary airfield matting has been installed at RAAF base Darwin.

As Alice Springs hosts a military base that is intimately involved in remote warfare, Pine Gap, residents here have more than the usual stake in a debate unfolding far beyond our horizons – whether to ban or how to control Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems, as the United Nations has dubbed them, or “killer robots” in popular parlance.

These are close to becoming a reality. The design capabilities being developed for driverless cars and AI-driven cameras are also being used for developing killer machines.

An Australian Airforce conference last year heard about nano-explosives with 10 times the force of conventional explosives that can be mounted as warheads on small drones. These drones can be manufactured in a 3D-printing process – tens of thousands a day with only 100 printers is already possible. The US and Chinese militaries are already working on launching large numbers in minutes, the conference was told.

The decision, in the conflict zone, of what to hit and what to avoid will have been programmed in at the design stage. Deployment and targeting will still be human-directed. It is the targeting function that makes the Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap relevant, as it is already, and has for a long time been, a key provider of targeting data to piloted and remotely piloted (no-one on board) weaponised airforce assets. As such, JDFPG is part of Australian and US weapons systems and is controversially involved in drone strikes in countries with which Australia is not at war.

“Machines with the power and discretion to take lives without human involvement are politically unacceptable, morally repugnant and should be prohibited by international law,” - Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres.