Further south down the coastline of the Levant Basin, the Gaza Marine field, 30km off the coast of the Palestinian territory, has long been known about.
In December of 2010 Great Britain announced the largest marine protected reserve in the world, 55 islands scattered remotely in the British Indian Ocean Territory, and called the Chagos Archipelago.
Meanwhile, across the border between the Northern Territory and Western Australia China is developing a commercial and diplomatic equivalent of the U.S. Marine base in the form of the biggest consulate in the region.