Cambodia opens naval base for media after rumors of foreign military outpost

A group of about 80 local and foreign journalists visited Cambodia's Ream Naval Base here on Friday after rumors that the country signed a secret deal allowing China to set up a military outpost.

Located on a peninsula about 20 km southeast of the Preah Sihanouk provincial town, the 100-hectare base could dock only small vessels weighing less than 5,000 tons because water depth was between 6 and 7 meters only, said Rear Admiral Ouk Seyha, commander of the Ream Naval Base.

"Neither the Ream Naval Base, nor other bases in Cambodia is allowed to host a foreign military base because it is against the country's constitution," he told reporters.

During the trip, journalists visited a U.S.-built boat maintenance facility, which houses a few patrol boats, and a small naval port, where about 20 patrol vessels equipped with artillery guns and rifles, are docked.

The visit came after The Wall Street Journal published an article on July 21 alleging that Cambodia had signed a secret agreement that gives China exclusive rights to part of the Ream Naval Base.

The Journal cited anonymous U.S. and allied officials as saying that the pact, signed this spring but not disclosed by either side, would allow China to use the base for 30 years, with automatic renewals every 10 years after that.

Wu Qian, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense of China, said Wednesday that the report is "untrue." China and Cambodia have carried out cooperation in military training and logistics equipment, none of which is targeted at any third party, Wu added.

Cambodia's government spokesman Phay Siphan said the visit was to show Cambodia's transparency and honesty and to prove that the news spread by the Journal was "fake news."

"Now, you all have witnessed with your eyes, our naval base is small, and those vessels are not used to attack, but to defend the country's maritime territory and to contribute to humanitarian activities such as maritime rescues," he told reporters after the visit.

Siphan said the fake news spread by the Journal was created in an attempt to jeopardize security in Cambodia and to sow discord in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"Their goal is to create a rift among the ASEAN member states, so they have a chance to invade the ASEAN's sovereign territory," he said.

Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Chhum Socheat said Cambodia does not need the presence of foreign troops because its armed forces are capable of defending the country.

"Now, you see, there's nothing," he said after the visit. "This shows that the report by the Journal was fake news."

Chhay Sophal, a professor of journalism at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, said the base is not suitable for a foreign military outpost because of its small size and shallow waters.

"Not any sign shows that there are Chinese or other foreigners at the base," he told reporters. "Water depth is shallow, that is impossible for large warships to dock, so I think the base cannot host a foreign military outpost."

Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen denied the report on Monday, saying he considered it as slander against Cambodia.

"No such thing happened since a foreign military base will be in full contradiction to Cambodia's constitution," he said. "We have never had any discussion with the Chinese leader, let alone the signing of an agreement."

"It's time to stop using such distorted news about China's military presence in Cambodia," he said.

Editor: Wang Shixue