The United States has confirmed that it will expand its Marine Corps in Australia in 2014, raising the number of marines to 1,150 from the present 250, China News Service reported.

The American Forces Press Service (AFPS), the official media information provider of the U.S. Department of Defense, reported on Monday that most of the 1,150 soldiers will be stationed at Robertson Barracks near Darwin, a port city in the north of Australia, and the rest will be posted in a 130-member Marine aviation detachment with four mid-sized helicopters, at the nearby Royal Australian Air Force Base Darwin.

In November 2011, on his visit to Australia, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that the U.S. would deploy Marines in Darwin, a strategic location close to both the Malacca Strait and the Indian Ocean.

The U.S. plans to station 2,500 marines in Australia by 2017, which would make its Australian military presence the largest since the Second World War.

In April 2012, the U.S. sent its first batch of 200 marines to Darwin. The figure increased to 250 one year later.

The increased U.S. military presence in Australia has been widely interpreted as part of Obama's strategy to rebalance to the Asia-Pacific, which was initiated in 2012.

The U.S. is also increasing its military cooperation with Singapore, South Korea, and the Philippines.

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