Original: housha source wechat official account: housha has been authorized to reprint
On June 8, the upgrading and reconstruction project of yuntu naval base in Cambodia aided by China was officially started. Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of national defense Diban and Chinese ambassador to Cambodia wangwentian attended the commencement ceremony. More than 2000 Cambodian military representatives, representatives of five local provinces and diplomatic envoys from many countries attended the ceremony.
The upgrading of yuntu naval base is a Sino Cambodian cooperation project and one of the symbols of China Cambodia friendship. The media at the scene obtained public information and took many live pictures.
However, such a national project, which is completely within Cambodia’s sovereignty, has been seriously disturbed by the United States for many times, and the Hun Sen government has also been under great pressure from the United States.
U.S. politicians and mainstream media have simply hyped the yuntu naval base as a “wrestling point” between China and the United States in an attempt to coerce Cambodia to choose its side (of course, on the side of the United States).
However, in the end, the United States has only humiliated itself. Because the yuntu naval base upgrading project was successfully started with China’s assistance, and a grand commencement ceremony was held. Isn’t this the face of the United States that demands “side selection”?
On June 6, the Washington Post also released a news with ulterior motives that China is helping Cambodia secretly build a naval base and will lay the foundation this week. However, both China and Cambodia have taken urgent measures to cover up their acts, and the White House is worried about the security and stability of the region.
Now the United States need not worry. China and Cambodia not only have no secret operations, but also beat the gong and drums to welcome everyone.
If the United States is worried, Australia will have to show its loyalty, which means “the monarch worries about the humiliation of his subjects, and the monarch disgraces his subjects to death”.
On the 7th, new Australian Prime Minister Albanese called the yuntu naval base “worrisome” and called on China and Cambodia to improve transparency.
Australian Foreign Minister Huang Xianying also called Cambodian foreign minister pasukun to make groundless accusations against the base construction, which was severely refuted by pasukun on the spot.
In fact, the United States and its followers need not be so anxious. Cambodia has said that the base upgrade is to combat illegal fishing and maritime crimes.
Biden said at the ASEAN – US summit that the United States would contribute $60million to help Southeast Asian countries combat illegal fishing and maritime crimes.
It’s good to have the best of both worlds. You don’t have to bother the US Coast Guard to travel thousands of miles to Southeast Asia.
Is Biden worried about illegal fishing and piracy being curbed?
In addition, the United States has more than 800 overseas military bases, large and small, in the world. China now has only one Naval Logistics Supply Depot in Djibouti. What is the United States worried about?
Moreover, according to the Cambodian constitution, yuntu naval base cannot become a foreign naval base.
If the United States does not have a ghost in its heart, what is it afraid of?
In fact, the United States has three fears:
1? In 1975, the United States sent bombers to bomb the yuntu base (air force) at that time, killing many Cambodians. Will these historical blood debts really be erased forever? What about other countries in Southeast Asia?
2? The Gulf of Thailand, where the cloud soil base is located, is the maritime traffic artery between Cambodia and Thailand to the Pacific and Indian oceans, and an important channel for the invasion of Southeast Asia by the great powers. If there is a strong naval force here, how can the forces that want to invade Southeast Asia not be afraid?
3? Yuntu naval base is less than 1000 kilometers away from the Strait of Malacca and is close to the South China Sea. To the west of the Gulf of Thailand is the narrowest part of the Malay Peninsula – the KLA isthmus.
Therefore, what the United States fears is that its hegemony here is threatened (it has the ability to block the Strait of Malacca, the sea throat), and it is not worried about regional security and stability at all.
Yuntu naval base
It is located in Sihanouk Province in the southwest of Cambodia. It used to be a very small port and can only berth 2000 tonnage ships at most. Even as a military wharf, its length is limited and it can only dock at the level of patrol boats.
When Cambodia ended its civil war and sought economic development wholeheartedly, it just caught up with the trend of China’s rapid economic development.
But the biggest problem in Cambodia is that the infrastructure construction is too backward. Therefore, Sihanouk port is planned to be a large-scale commercial port, and the cloud soil on the edge will be built into a modern naval base to strengthen its naval defense force.
The US military, which bombed the yuntu base in those years, knew the importance of this place very well. Therefore, the United States took the initiative to help Cambodia build a small building for the maritime administration in yuntu naval base in 2012 and an inflatable boat maintenance facility in 2017 on the basis of the aid package.
Since Cambodia does not allow foreign countries to have military bases, the United States only wants to get things done in a hurry. The real purpose of the two “aid” facilities is to turn the land into “nail households” and prevent Cambodia from accepting China’s help to expand the naval base.
Cambodia is a weak country and can only deal with the United States. Otherwise, even Europe and Australia would come out to beat Cambodia (cut off aid).
In 2018, the United States tried to test Hun Sen, saying that it would invest in upgrading the base, but was rejected. In 2019, the Wall Street Journal publicly attacked Hun Sen and spread rumors that China has owned the exclusive right to use the base for 30 years.
In September, 2020, the Cambodian military demolished the small building of the maritime administration without notifying the United States. In early November, another building was demolished.
“Nail households” quit, but Cambodian defense minister Diban responded to the United States: these buildings are shabby and shabby and can be demolished at any time. Cambodia has not informed the United States of its obligations, and has the right to seek assistance from any aspect conducive to Cambodia’s development.
This is tantamount to indicating to the United States that Cambodia will cooperate with China to build yuntu naval base, and “nail households” will get away.
Then the Washington Post took over from the Wall Street Journal and published at least six “masterpieces” to demonize China Cambodia cooperation, either “secret” or “opaque”, as if the United States were a foreman.
After Biden took office, he sent Deputy Secretary of state Wendy Sherman to visit three Southeast Asian countries (Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand) in June 2021. The focus of her trip is to put pressure on Cambodia.
When Sherman arrived in Phnom Penh, she put on the posture of asking questions. During the meeting, she asked Hun Sen to explain:
1? Why did you decide to demolish the U.S. aid buildings in yuntu naval base?
2? Does China have a military presence in Cambodia?
3? Why is Cambodia making slow progress on the issue of human rights?
How to deal with buildings in Cambodia? Does it need to be approved by the White House? Jokes. The two parted unhappily.
On the issue of human rights, how could the United States have the courage to talk about human rights in Cambodia?
The United States almost bombed Cambodia back to the “Stone Age”. How many people were killed? Compared with that year, Cambodian people are different in terms of social order, employment rate, education level, traffic conditions, clean water, electricity, communication, network construction, etc. are these not human rights progress? Are the bombs sent by US bombers “human rights”?
Yuntu naval base was entrusted to China for construction because Hun Sen had high trust in China.
Hun Sen is by no means a clown like politician in the West. He is a political strongman coming out of the dead.
Sherman did not intimidate Hun Sen. after he angrily left, Ferrara, military attache of the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia, then asked for a “visit” to the naval base.
But Hun Sen only allowed him to visit the canteen, gym and bathroom
When the United States accused Cambodia of being opaque, Hun Sen responded: are you here to visit or search?
Then the US media worried, worried, worried from time to time until the base was officially upgraded.
The United States is not just worried about the Strait of Malacca.
Yuntu naval base is 1066 kilometers away from Yulin naval base on Hainan Island, while four worker islands are being built in the South China Sea, and the base is also ready to be built. There is also a seven star international airport under construction near yuntu naval base, which is only more than 20 nautical miles away from the waterway of Sihanouk port. It is developed and constructed by Tianjin UnionPay Investment Development (Group).
Military ports, airports, artificial islands… The Pentagon has linked all these together and speculated on the motivation of China’s assistance in the construction of yuntu naval base with the hegemonic logic of the Americans.
They believe that once the PLA takes military action in the Taiwan Strait, the US military’s maritime action route is bound to be seriously threatened, the US military will decisively lose its strategic initiative in the waters, and China’s sea domination will be greatly strengthened.
However, there is really no need for the United States to be so anxious. Today is Cambodia, and many countries in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific will need to cooperate with China in the future. Can the United States overcome its anxiety? This is not good for your health.
In addition to the sober understanding of Hun Sen government, Cambodia is so tough because it has a strong good neighbor, good friend, good partner and good brother!
Many countries are also looking at Cambodia! We just want to make a sample for everyone openly!