National Interest

The presence of a base in Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand would provide the PLAN with a new southern flank in the South China Sea.

Phnom Penh has maintained what has been described as a “cozy relationship" with Beijing for many years, but it was only last year that the controversy over the Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand intensified when reports circulated that China was seeking a thirty-year lease of the base.

The presence of a base in Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand would provide the PLAN with a new southern flank in the South China Sea but also improve its ability to respond to any conflict near the highly strategic Strait of Malacca, through which an estimated 80 percent of China’s fuel imports travel.