The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), the official name of the Chinese naval forces, can now permanently operate from a second overseas base. Satellite imagery shows China has a pair of warships that have been docked in Cambodia for months.
Straight Arrow News previously reported on Cambodia giving China exclusive access to operate out of the Ream Naval Station.
Even though the Cambodian constitution prohibits foreign military powers from operating permanently within the country, the Cambodian government started letting the Chinese make improvements to the pier at Ream a couple of years ago. Those improvements included expanding the pier, dredging the harbor so bigger ships could dock there, and building permanent structures on land like dry docks and troop barracks.
The latest wrinkle to the story came on April 18, when the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) published photos of a pair of PLAN vessels.
The CSIS told Newsweek the ships have been moored at the pier longer than what would be expected if they were just passing through or in the area for naval exercises.
When counting the number of ships, China has the world’s largest navy, but the Ream Naval Station marks just the second overseas naval base for China. The first is in Djibouti, at the base of the Horn of Africa.
These bases mark the start of what Chinese leader Xi Jinping hopes will be the beginning of China’s blue-water navy.
A blue-water navy is a maritime force capable of navigating the world’s open oceans in a safe and efficient manner.
China is not there yet, and the location of their two naval bases proves that. The PLAN never really has to leave the safety of the shoreline too much to sail to its overseas bases; Chinese ships can pretty much hug the coastline to get where they need to go.
So, while plenty of folks are taking notice of the newest Chinese naval base, it’s not necessarily a surprise it was built, but it does add to the concern of growing Chinese naval aggression in the region.
