NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AFP) - Indonesia has warned deploying US Marines in Australia could cause regional tensions, highlighting the balancing act nations face as Washington and Beijing jostle for influence in Asia. China's regional neighbours welcome the United States' diplomatic campaign to assert itself as a Pacific power, and create a counterbalance to the Asian superpower's growing might, but can ill afford to alienate Beijing. President Barack Obama announced in Canberra on Wednesday that the US would deploy up to 2,500 Marines in the northern city of Darwin, rankling China which termed it "not quite appropriate". Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, has fast emerged as a cornerstone ally for Obama's administration but nevertheless echoed Chinese concerns about a US military build-up. "What I would hate to see is if such developments were to provoke a reaction and counter-reaction precisely to create that vicious circle of tensions and mistrust or distrust," Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit on the Indonesian of Bali. "That's why it's very important when a decision of this type is taken there is transparency of what the scenario being envisaged is and there is no misunderstanding as a result," he added. Indonesia's frank comments came against a backdrop of a looming confrontation over a maritime dispute between the US and China who will meet at Saturday's East Asia Summit, which follows the Bali talks. Singapore Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam said Wednesday that the ASEAN nations do not want to get "caught between the competing interests" of major powers.