The Chinese embassy in Cambodia sought to downplay reports it had pulled out of a controversial canal project by publishing an article that described them as “complete nonsense”.
Media reports said Beijing had withdrawn from the US$1.7 billion Funan Techo canal, which will link the capital Phnom Penh with the Gulf of Thailand, after a disagreement about control of the project.
The project has also caused concern in neighbouring Vietnam and in the United States, while conservationists have warned it threatens “fragile” ecosystems and agriculture.
