KhmerTimes-Sept 11, 2024
It has been officially confirmed in a report published by China’s state-run newspaper, China Daily, that China will donate two Chinese Type 056 corvettes to Cambodia. The ships are now being built in China and are expected to be handed to Cambodia next year. The report also quotes Wu Peixin, a Beijing-based observer, who notes that the purpose of the two ships is to help the Cambodian Navy extend its operational range and deal with difficult situations such as foreign warship provocations. “Currently, the Cambodian navy operates a small fleet of surface combat vessels, most of which are light-duty patrol craft. This has restricted the force’s operational ca pability, leading to its inability to protect the country’s maritime interests and rights,” Wu said. “Meanwhile, increasing maritime traffic in the region, which is important to the international trade system, requires nations with long coastal lines to have the necessary means and capacity to maintain smooth passage of commercial ships and respond to possible emergencies. And that means Cambodia needs to strengthen its marine hardware.” Even before the confirmation, many Western media outlets had published critical reports on the donation, marking it as China’s next step to increase its influence in the Southeast Asian Sea through utilising the Ream Navy base in Cambodia. Cambodia’s National Defense Ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata, however, has made it clear that the gifting of the two warships was a positive response to Cambodia’s request as part of the Kingdom’s quest to protect its own sovereignty and territorial integrity. “It is in the aim of strengthening the capacity and ability of Cambodia to protect and maintain peace, stability, and security, as well as for supporting search and rescue operations and other humanitarian activities,” she told China Daily. Read more at: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501556786/no-agenda-behind-chinas-donation-of-two-warships-to-cambodia/
