Biden Asks Cambodian Prime Minister for Transparency on Chinese Military Activities at Naval Base

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks iat DelawareImages)

President Joe Biden on Saturday urged his Cambodian counterpart to ensure “full transparency” regarding Chinese military activities at Ream Naval base on Cambodia’s southern coast, the White House said.

Biden met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who is also chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), on the sidelines of the regional summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Saturday.

“I also want to thank you for Cambodia’s clear condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and your leadership of ASEAN during what had to be one of the most difficult years,” Biden said in the meeting.

Biden urged Hun Sen to “reopen civic and political space ahead of the 2023 elections” and called for the release of activists detained on politically motivated charges, including Theary Seng, who was jailed for treason in June.

The president also raised concerns about Chinese military activities at the Ream Naval base and called for full transparency, according to the White House.

China’s Military Presence

The United States had urged Cambodia to provide transparency about China’s role at its naval base following reports that a new facility was being built for “the exclusive use” of the Chinese military there.

Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh said on June 9 that China funded the modernization of the Ream Naval base but that the upgrade was for the benefit of Cambodia’s National Defense, not the Chinese military.

“Ream Naval Base is small, therefore we need to upgrade our base to protect our nation, territory and sovereignty,” Tea Banh said during a groundbreaking event at the naval base, the Khmer Times reported. He said the upgrade includes rehabilitation of the dry dock, pier, and slipway.

Chinese ambassador Wang Wentian said at the groundbreaking event that upgrading the base is “not targeted at any third party and will be conducive to even closer practical cooperation between the two militaries.”

The Chinese military constructed three new buildings at Ream in August and September 2022, according to satellite images released by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, a U.S.-based think tank, on Oct. 12, 2021.

The Pentagon said in a 2021 report (pdf) that Cambodia demolished two U.S.-funded facilities at Ream after declining Washington’s offer to pay for renovation of one of the facilities, “which suggests that Cambodia may have instead accepted assistance from the PRC to develop the base,” the report stated, referring to the People’s Republic of China.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters on June 6 that an exclusive Chinese military presence at Ream could threaten Cambodia’s autonomy and undermine regional security.

“We and countries in the region have expressed concerns about the lack of transparency on the intent, the nature, the scope of this project, as well as the role that the PRC military is playing in its construction and its post-construction use of the facility,” Price said.