this is infuriating news, or rather reassuring ... depends on your point of view ...
Cambodian PM says naval base not just for China
published : 7 Oct 2020 at 16:17
China would not have exclusive access to a Cambodian naval base, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Wednesday, despite Beijing chipping in for upgrades after a US-funded facility was razed at the site last month.
The Ream base is strategically located in the Gulf of Thailand, providing ready access to the fiercely contested South China Sea -- a key global shipping route.
Beijing claims the majority of the resource-rich sea -- vying with six other countries.
"Other countries can also ask for permission to dock ships, re-fuel or hold (joint) exercises with Cambodia," Hun Sen said in a speech at the opening ceremony of a Chinese-owned theme park near the capital Phnom Penh.
Satellite images released by a Washington-based think tank last week showed a US-funded tactical naval headquarters on Cambodia's southern coast had been demolished.
An American embassy spokesman told AFP Wednesday that the US was "disappointed" by the move, adding the base had been a sign of US-Cambodia relations and was only seven years old.
"We have concerns that razing the facility may be tied to plans for hosting People's Republic of China military assets and personnel at Ream Naval Base."
Such a military presence "would negatively impact the US-Cambodia bilateral relationship and be disruptive and destabilising to the Indo-Pacific region," the spokesman warned.
The Wall Street Journal last year reported on a secret draft deal allowing China to dock warships at the Ream base.
The Cambodian government in June denied this and maintained its foreign policy was independent.
Cambodia said the facility was simply being relocated about 30 kilometres north of Ream as it had outgrown the former site.
Hun Sen has repeatedly insisted Cambodia's constitution forbids any foreign military base within its borders.
In recent years, he has tilted away from the US after Washington's criticism of alleged abuses by his government.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/1998243/cambodian-pm-says-naval-base-not-just-for-china
This is kind of funny. This was a long story. It took 2 to 3 years to develop. This is how I think it started, and with a place like Cambodia ruled by a strongman, things are never apparent to the outside. All anyone saw was new Chinese investments, and the questions started.media: A lot of Chinese showing up in this corner of the globe.
Hun Sen: Just normal commercial activity.
media: What's with all this new Chinese lead infrastructure building?
Hun Sen: Just commercial development.
media: What about the activity at the naval base?
Hun Sen: Nothing going on there.
media: Why is a new naval base being built?
Hun Sen: There is no new naval base, only an upgrade construction.
media: Is China build the naval base for itself?
Hun Sen: Impossible, it is against the constitution for a foreign base.
media: Why all the major construction at the base still?
Hun Sen: Just normal renovations.
media: How come the American headquarters building was demolished?
Hun Sen: This naval base built by the Chinese is not exclusively for them, it is for everybody!
