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Image source, fake images
Chinese President Xi Jinping (center) and his wife welcome Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen at Dai Le Duong in Beijing in August 2019 on the occasion of the China Belt and Road Forum celebration. .
China will not have a monopoly on access to the Cambodian naval base, the AFP news agency reported, citing the Cambodian leader.
Prime Minister Hun Sen issued a statement on Wednesday, though Beijing invested in upgrading the site after Cambodia destroyed a US-sponsored base last month.
The Ream naval base is strategically located in the Gulf of Thailand, which empties into the South China Sea, which is subject to fierce disputes between countries in the region, and is a major global sea lane.
Beijing, with Tongue Tang, has claimed much of this sea.
Ream is only 100 km from the border between Vietnam and Cambodia.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of an amusement park owned by China, Hun Sen said that “other countries could also request to dock, refuel or conduct drills. [chung] with Cambodia “.
Satellite images released last week by a Washington-based research organization show that the US-funded tactical naval facility, located off the southern coast of Cambodia, has flattened.
Image source, CSISAMTI
Cambodia confirmed leveling of US-sponsored defense facilities to develop a naval base with Chinese money
A spokesman for the US embassy said Wednesday that the United States was “disappointed” by the incident, the AFP news agency reported.
The person was quoted by AFP, adding that the base was originally seen as a symbol of US-Cambodian relations, and that it was only opened seven years ago.
“We are concerned that the destruction of this facility may be related to plans to seize Chinese military assets and personnel at Ream Naval Base.”
That military presence is likely to have a negative impact on the bilateral relationship between the United States and Cambodia and disrupt and destabilize the Indo-Pacific region, the spokesman warned.
The Wall Street Journal reported last year on a secret draft agreement that would allow China to dock warships at the Ream naval base near the Cambodian coastal city of Sihanoukville.
Phnom Penh in June rejected the news, saying that the Cambodian government was pursuing an independent foreign policy.
Cambodia says the facility has simply been relocated to a new location, 30 kilometers north of Ream, as the old site has become narrow.
Mr. Hun Sen repeatedly repeated that Cambodia’s constitution prohibits allowing any foreign military base to be located on Cambodian territory.
In recent years, Hun Sen has turned away from the United States, as Washington has criticized cases that include abuse of power by the Cambodian government.
