Australia is to boost its defence spending because of concerns over military expansion in the region, especially by the Chinese.
Although Australia did well out of China’s boom and need for commodities, there is wariness about China’s less than transparent activities in the southern oceans.
It was always an edgy relationship with the AU Mars conjunct the China Saturn in Virgo; and the China Sun Neptune in Libra square Uranus hitting off the AU Sun Saturn in Capricorn.
The relationship chart has an uncomfortable composite Sun square Neptune Mars – so not a recipe for long term co-operation and mutual support; plus a oneupmanship composite Jupiter opposition Pluto. That latter is under pressure till late 2017. In 2018 there’s an insecure, argumentative tr Uranus trine the composite Mars; and by 2020 the disruptive tr Pluto trine the composite Uranus will upset diplomatic relations considerably.