U.S. President Barack Obama says the Asia-Pacific region is now a “top priority" of U.S. foreign affairs and security policies.

Speaking at the Australian Parliament in Canberra on Thursday, Obama revealed a plan to station U.S. forces in Australia for the first time since the Vietnam War.

The U.S. president also vowed to engage in military cooperation with countries in the Asia-Pacific region that are mired in territorial disputes with China.

Analysts in Seoul say Obama's remarks suggest Washington will keep China in check both diplomatically and militarily and through the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The TPP is a U.S.-led multilateral free trade agreement that seeks to further liberalize the economies of the Asia-Pacific region.