A new report has emerged that claims China is handing over two warships to Cambodia along with the military facility at the Ream Naval Base, which Beijing constructed. This triggered suspicions that the base would be used exclusively by the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).

According to an exclusive report by Radio Free Asia (RFA), based on insider information from Cambodia, China is expected to soon give the Cambodian navy access to two warships, a deep-draft pier big enough to accommodate aircraft carriers, and other facilities it has built at a base along the country’s coast.

The sources added that about 100 Chinese naval personnel have been “working day and night” at a portion of the Ream naval facility in the Gulf of Thailand to prepare it for the handover to Cambodian control, which is anticipated to happen at the end of September.

The publication was informed that the base has remained inaccessible to Cambodian employees. However, the facilities, which were entirely created and funded by China, will soon be transferred to Cambodia. 

In February this year,  reports on the progress of construction at the base citing satellite imagery obtained and analyzed by Tom Shugart, a former US Navy submariner and defense analyst.

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As of January 2024, numerous structures had been erected in the northern section of the base, accompanied by what appeared to be streets and foundations. Additionally, large fuel tanks were spotted, suggesting their potential future use by Chinese vessels.

More importantly, there have been reports about an aircraft carrier pier for over a year. Last year’s reports suggested that a pier at the military base, capable of hosting an aircraft carrier, was nearing completion. This claim was supported by images obtained from BlackSky, a commercial imagery firm in the United States that has been tracking the construction developments.

Further, the photographs of the Ream Naval Base captured in July 2023 revealed a nearly completed pier that bore a striking resemblance, in both dimensions and design, to a pier utilized by the Chinese military at their exclusive overseas facility in the Indian Ocean region, specifically in Djibouti. Consequently, the claims presented by RFA in its report are not entirely unexpected, yet they are undoubtedly intriguing.

It is noteworthy that the aircraft carrier-size pier at Ream base and dry dock facilities would provide the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) with an extended presence in the Bay of Bengal and affect the balance of power in the region.

Certain analysts speculate that, in return for warships and a substantial naval facility, the two countries may have reached an agreement allowing the Chinese navy preferential access to the new base, which has thus far denied docking privileges to Western vessels. If that suspicion is true, Chinese ships and aircraft carriers will be docking in Cambodia in the future.

On a visit to the base, an RFA reporter saw two PLAN warships berthed at the new dock, close to an area being constructed. Additionally, the reporter observed new buildings, along with trucks and cranes used for construction.

EurAsian Times understands that these warships have remained docked in Cambodia for several weeks. Chinese vessels anchored at the facility first in early December last year. In April this year, satellite images revealed that the Chinese vessels had remained docked at the base for most of the five months preceding that, triggering concerns about a permanent Chinese military presence at the base.

As per the RFA report, the two warships—which RFA recognized as PLAN’s Type 056A missile corvettes with hull numbers 630 and 631—and the new facilities would be provided to the Cambodian navy. Following the arrival of two vessels of the same class at Ream in December, the Chinese military has provided training to Cambodian naval personnel for the operation of these ships.

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China’s Growing Military Clout In Cambodia

Cambodia continues to assert that the PLAN was not using Ream’s facilities as a military base, but this has not helped the anxieties among China’s adversaries, particularly the United States.

So, while the United States has expressed alarm and issued warnings regarding Ream’s alleged development as China’s first military facility in the Indo-Pacific, Cambodia has denied any plans to grant access to the People’s Liberation Army. Nonetheless, the cooperation between the two sides has quietly caught pace.

The strategically located Ream facility, near the entrance of the Gulf of Thailand, has long been used by the Cambodian navy as a point of entry into the South China Sea and other areas. This has triggered concerns in the West as well as China’s regional rivals and adversaries that the base would someday turn into a Chinese Navy outpost owing to its expansion with Chinese help.

The Malacca Strait shipping lanes are likely to act as a major choke point in the event of a conflict between the US and its regional allies. Gaining access to Ream Naval Base would enhance and expand Beijing’s naval operations in this region. Moreover, in case of a conflict in the South China Sea, China could use such facilities to choke the Malacca Strait and thwart any potential reinforcements for its adversaries via this crucial route.

China’s enormous fleet is constrained by the lack of a worldwide network of bases and logistical support. Therefore, Beijing’s goal of building a fully functional blue-water navy capable of conducting worldwide operations depends on the establishment of these facilities, with the Indo-Pacific certainly the most strategic location.

With this, Beijing would be able to project its naval power throughout the Indo-Pacific area and beyond more effectively, giving the PLA Navy freedom and power when carrying out operations in distant waters.

Over the past few years, the US government has warned that the Ream naval base is being surreptitiously transformed into China’s second overseas military base after Djibouti. China and Cambodia share a deep-rooted history of military collaboration, which has recently been exemplified by their comprehensive military exercises.

According to Cambodian authorities, the latest plans at or near the Ream naval facility are nothing more than a sovereign country enhancing its military capabilities. Cambodia’s constitution forbids the country from hosting foreign bases. Nonetheless, the United States and the nations bordering the South China Sea are closely monitoring the developments.

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