Australia will spend A$747 million ($580 million) to upgrade four military bases in its north and expand war games with the United States, Prime Minister Scott Morrison will say on Wednesday.

An airstrip in the Northern Territory will be lengthened to support larger aircraft, firing ranges overhauled and new training facilities set up for defence personnel and U.S. marines, according to extracts of the announcement seen by Reuters.

“Working with the United States, our allies and Indo-Pacific neighbours, we will continue to advance Australia’s interests by investing in the Australian Defence Force,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison will say.

Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton on Sunday said a conflict between China and Taiwan “should not be discounted”.

THE build up of the US Marine Air-Ground Task Force in Darwin moved into overdrive this week with a squadron of MV-22B Ospreys, a detachment of UH-1Y Venoms and AH-1Z Vipers from Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 367 joining a new tranche of 300 US Marines who touched down in the Top End.

Other heavy fighting equipment involved in the rotation includes an artillery battery from 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment; a detachment from 1st Combat Engineer Battalion; a detachment of RQ-20B Pumas and RQ-21A Blackjacks from Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3; and a collection of transportation and engineering assets from Combat Logistics Battalion 7.

More than 1300 US military personnel are now in Darwin as part of the 10th Marine Rotational Force – Darwin (C). This will grow to 2200.

The 22-year-old marine who arrived in the Northern Territory earlier this week is part of the annual training rotation that will see thousands of marines fly into Darwin this year.

[unironically] - more to come.

A BATCH of 200 US Marines is due to arrive in Darwin this week as part of annual military exercise Marine Rotational Force-Darwin.

Defence confirmed the second tranche of US Marines would undertake two weeks of quarantine at RAAF Base Darwin.

The four subsequent batches of US Marines will quarantine at former immigration detention centre Bladin Point, now known as Bladin Village. Defence confirmed only one US Marine in the first tranche of arrivals tested positive for COVID-19.

A total of 2200 US Marines have been deployed to Darwin as part of MRF-D.

A US Marine who arrived in the Territory as part of the first tranche of Marine Rotational Force - Darwin has tested positive for coronavirus.

The 21-year-old man, who arrived on an international flight to the Northern Territory on Thursday, February 11, tested positive to COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

The man is asymptomatic and has been moved from quarantine to Royal Darwin Hospital, in line with established procedures.

The Department of Chief Minister and Cabinet said that “due to strict quarantine measures in place for all arriving Marines”, the case was “promptly detected” and the Marine “had no direct contact with the general community”.

Since the pandemic began, there have been 104 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in the NT, including 65 from international repatriation flights.