What did Vietnam say about the news that China had renovated the Ream base for Cambodia?

Ream base in Sihanoukville province, has a strategic location and directs to the Gulf of Thailand – Photo: KHMER TIMES

At a regular press conference on June 9, responding to reporters’ questions about Cambodia and China breaking ground on a project to renovate Ream naval base in Sihanoukville province (Cambodia) on June 8, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs assigned Le Thi Thu Hang says:

“Vietnam always wishes to maintain and strengthen good cooperative relations with countries around the world. At the same time, cooperation between countries should make positive contributions to peace, security and stability. and prosperity of the region and the world”.

According to the newspaper Khmer Times of Cambodia, the project to renovate the Ream naval base began its first work on the morning of June 9 after the groundbreaking ceremony a day earlier.

This is part of China’s grant to Cambodia. In addition to renovating and expanding buildings in the Ream base, Beijing will also support upgrading Phnom Penh’s warships, building wharfs, upgrading repair docks in the base and military-civilian hospital. .

“Ream naval base is small, so we need to upgrade the base to protect our country, territory and sovereignty. The Ream naval base modernization project is an important strategy for the development of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, in line with the White Paper published by the Ministry of National Defense,” said Cambodian Defense Minister Tea. Banh spoke on June 8.

Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh and Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Vuong Van Thien at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ream base renovation project on June 8 – Photo: KHMER TIMES

China-related activities at the Ream base have always attracted international media attention. Earlier this week, the Washington Post According to US sources, Beijing is building a secret base for its military in Ream.

Phnom Penh has denied the above information, and emphasized its position that no country should station troops on its territory.

This is not the first time Cambodia has spoken out about rumors related to Chinese activities in the country. At one point, Phnom Penh invited international journalists to visit the Ream base to prove that there was no Chinese army here.

Beijing is among the countries that invest the most in Cambodia, focusing on infrastructure projects. In 2021, despite the COVID-19 epidemic, Chinese investment in Cambodia still increased by more than 67%, according to data released by the Cambodia Development Council in March 2022.