U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with top Cambodian officials Tuesday to discuss resuming joint military training programs, amid growing concerns about the Southeast Asian country’s ties with China.
"We had substantive conversations about ways to strengthen U.S.-Cambodian defense ties, and I'm looking forward to further dialogue," Austin said in a post on the social media site, X.
Pentagon spokesperson Major General Patrick Ryder said Austin’s talks with Cambodian leaders included restarting military training on disaster assistance and U.N. peacekeeping, as well unexploded ordnance clearance and de-mining.
Austin had separate meetings with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Senate President Hun Sen, who is the father of Hun Manet and served as the premier for 38 years. He also met with Defense Minister Tea Seiha.
There is measured optimism in Washington that Hun Manet will align more closely with the United States than his father, who served as prime minister until last year. Hun Sen valued a close relationship with China.
Last month, China and Cambodia kicked off annual military drills with a stated goal to strengthen cooperation and trust between the countries’ forces. The countries have held their annual drills, called “Golden Dragon,” together since 2016. Cambodia’s government called off similar military exercises with the U.S. in January 2017.
China has helped Cambodia finance new military equipment and assisted with upgrades to military facilities such as the Ream Naval Base, on the coast of southwestern Cambodia.
The United States and international security analysts have expressed concern about China’s involvement in the base, warning the spot could become a strategic outpost for Beijing's navy.
Two Chinese warships have been docked at a new pier of the naval base since December. Cambodia’s defense ministry said last month that the five-month-long presence of the ships does not indicate the permanent deployment of Chinese forces.
Some information for this report was provided by Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
