The ball is in Australia's court when it comes to mending relations with China

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Willing to be a US plug-in? Canberra plays a very dangerous game: Global Times editorial

Last week, Richard Marles paid his first visit to the US as Australia's deputy prime minister and defense minister. In the four-day visit, he repeatedly advocated that Australia and the US should work together to contain China. Marles also said that Australia and the US will "move beyond interoperability to interchangeability. And we will ensure we have all the enablers in place to operate seamlessly together at speed." Marles' remarks suggest that he is ready to serve as a "forward theater commander" of the US.

Judging from the strengths of Australian and US forces, the so-called interoperability or interchangeability will undoubtedly be a one-way "operation" of the US to the Australian military, and the result will be a greater integration of the Australian military into the US global military system, driven by Washington. Just as some Australian media noted, Marles did not only degrade himself, but actually belittled the whole of Australia, which is tantamount to surrendering Australia's sovereignty to the US. The Australian Defense Force would then become a plug-in of the US, while Australia would become a forward base of the US military.

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