Deep in the outback, a flurry of construction by Australia and the United States is transforming this once quiet military installation into a potential launchpad in case of conflict with China.

Runways are being expanded and strengthened to accommodate the allies’ biggest airplanes, including American B-52 bombers. A pair of massive fuel depots is rising side by side to supply U.S. and Australian fighter jets. And two earth-covered bunkers have been built for U.S. munitions.

But the activity at RAAF Tindal, less than 2,000 miles from the emerging flash points of the South China Sea, isn’t unique. Across Australia, decades-old facilities — many built by the United States during World War II — are now being dusted off or upgraded amid growing fears of another global conflict.

Marles declined to comment on the increasing rotations ... but said the trajectory is “an increasing American force posture in Australia.”

The federal funding boost will upgrade bases in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and North Queensland during the coming decade, as part of Defence's pivot towards the Indo-Pacific.

Darwin's Larrakeyah Defence Precinct will be upgraded to berth submarines, but Mr Conroy said Australia's future nuclear submarine fleet would not be based in the Top End.

He said the government was focused on "hardening and developing" bases in the Northern Territory, as well as other installations in northern Western Australia and North Queensland.

"The NT is critical to the defence of the nation, not just in defending Australia but projecting power out into our region against any potential adversary," Mr Conroy said. He said the funding would go towards projects such as surveillance aircraft based at RAAF Tindal, near Katherine, and the purchasing and training of crew for new amphibious landing craft based in Darwin.

The national significance of key Northern Territory infrastructure assets has been singled-out in a crucial new defence review released on Monday.

The Defence Strategic Review found recent severe flooding which closed the Stuart Highway and Alice Springs to Darwin railway this year had “highlighted the importance” of well-maintained resilient civil infrastructure, including ports and roads that support the network.

The future role of Robertson Barracks, home to the 1st Brigade, in our ongoing defence is unclear, but could potentially be beefed up.

The report forecasts “significant changes to army force posture and structure”, saying army combat brigades “may be re-roled and select capabilities postured in Northern Australia”.

One of six key recommendations is to improve the Australian Defence Force’s capacity to operate from Australia’s northern bases.

Australia needs to have a more honest conversation, with itself and its main ally, about the b-word. As a straight-talking country that prides itself on its closeness to the United States, Australia finds it curiously difficult to talk in plain terms about foreign military basing on its territory, at least in public. It’s an interesting kink in the country’s strategic psyche—and one that needs straightening out sooner rather than later.

As the defence strategic review announcement and AUKUS submarine decision are pending, Canberra should develop clear, plain language that eschews euphemism when talking about the US’s forward posture and associated basing arrangements in Australia.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Tuesday that the US will increase its military presence in Australia in a buildup aimed at China.

In a joint press conference with Australia’s defense minister and foreign minister, Austin said that the US will increase its rotational forces in Australia. “That includes rotations of bomber task forces, fighters, and future rotations of US Navy and US Army capabilities,” Austin said.

Many countries in the region are not eager to get on board with the US’s confrontational approach to China. The prime minister of Papua New Guinea said this week that his country can’t afford to get caught between the US and China and said he told the US your “enemy is not my enemy.”

Indonesia’s president expressed similar concerns during a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in November, saying the ASEAN must not let the region turn into a frontline for a new Cold War.

Details on the rotational deployments aren’t clear, but they will likely focus on the Australian city of Darwin in the Northern Territory, where US Marines have been rotating through for years.