Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base, on the Gulf of Thailand, is unlikely to fall exclusively into China’s grasp following a Chinese upgrade of the military facility, but it could still serve as a key intelligence-gathering post for Beijing. The Lowy Institute.
A new Analysis, entitled Partnership of convenience: Ream Naval Base and the Cambodia–China convergence, by Lowy Institute Research Fellow Dr Rahman Yaacob, sets out why Cambodia has sought to deepen its defence ties with China. It also examines Beijing’s assistance to modernise Ream Naval Base, and what Western countries can do to balance China’s influence in Cambodia.
China’s funding for the redevelopment of the Ream Naval Base has been a concern for the United States and its allies, given its potential to hand the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) another foothold in Southeast Asia.
“However, geographic limitations, a lack of strategic value, and domestic political constraints in Cambodia present obstacles to any Chinese efforts to turn Ream into a military base fully under PLA control.
“China is likely focused on gaining preferential access to the base or to use its facilities there to collect intelligence against other states.
Dr Yaacob notes Western countries, aiming to counter China’s influence in Cambodia, have often failed to understand the factors that have pushed the two countries together.
He argues the United States and its partners, such as Australia, should offer Cambodia greater assistance to modernise its military, and access to education programs, while seeking to deepen understanding of Cambodia’s complicated relations with its Southeast Asian neighbours, Vietnam and Thailand.
“Dr Yaacob has written one of the most authoritative publicly available assessments on the future of Ream Naval Base, drawing on extensive fieldwork, unique access to Cambodian defence officials and interviews with officials from neighbouring countries,” according to the Lowy Institute’s Research Director Hervé Lemahieu.
