US Navy ships to Cambodia, China’s top ally, for first time in 8 years

A US Navy warship arrived Monday in Cambodia, the first such visit in eight years to the nation close to China in Southeast Asia. The Cambodian government suggested the port call signaled an improvement in the long-strained relationship.

The USS Savannah docked in the port of Sihanoukville in the Gulf of Thailand for a five-day visit. The Savannah, named the Littoral Combat Ship, carries a crew of 103.

“It’s great to be back, to bring back the American presence here after eight years,” said the ship’s commander, Daniel A. Sledz, in a briefing for reporters. He was given a bouquet of flowers by a Cambodian official and shook hands with his colleagues.

The United States has for years had a strained relationship with Cambodia, criticizing its government for political repression and human rights abuses. There is some concern about its close relationship with China, which Washington fears could gain special access to a Cambodian military base in the Gulf of Thailand, not far from where the Savannah is anchored.

Recently, there seem to be steps to mend the relationship.

Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defense said last week that the trip was planned after the US request to call the port, and will “strengthen and expand friendly ties and promote bilateral cooperation” between the two countries.

Two days before that, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cambodia noted the “positive momentum of relations and cooperation between the two countries” and the “renewal of military-to-military cooperation” between Cambodia and the US.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin he visited Cambodia in early June, where he held talks with Prime Minister Hun Manet and other senior officials. He also met with Cambodian students from US military training programs. Hun Manet himself graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point.

The US Department of Defense said at the time that Austin’s talks were about “opportunities to strengthen the US-Cambodia defense relationship to support regional peace and security,” among other issues.

But Washington remains concerned that the development of Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base near Sihanoukville will serve Beijing’s interests in the region.

The US and others are proposing that China’s navy establish a permanent base at Ream, which would facilitate access to the Malacca Strait, a key shipping route between the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.

The dispute over the work of the Chinese in Ream began in 2019 when the Wall Street Journal reported that the previous draft of the agreement seen by American officials would allow China for 30 years to use the base, where it would be able to send military personnel, to maintain. weapons and warships.

The Cambodian government has rejected such an agreement or any intention to give China exclusive rights to the domain, although Beijing has supported its expansion.

Washington has said the Ream base could give Beijing a strategic position in the Gulf of Thailand near the South China Sea, which China claims is almost all of it.

Chinese warships first docked at the 1,190-foot pier in December last year. The pair arrived at Sihanoukville port in May as part of a major military exercise between Beijing and Cambodia.

China’s military unveiled “robodogs” armed with machine guns this year in annual joint exercises, known as the “Golden Dragon” exercises.

Cambodia’s Ministry of Defense said 27 US Navy ships have visited the country since 2007, although the USS Savannah’s visit was the first stopover in eight years.

On Monday, Beijing responded to the US warship’s visit to Sihanoukville and said “such exchanges and cooperation in security and defense should contribute to promoting regional peace and stability, rather than the opposite.”

In September, Cambodia’s Ministry of Defense said that China had given its military two warships of the type that had been stationed there for months. China will hand over two newly built Type 56 corvettes – small vessels usually used for coastal patrol – early next year, after Cambodia requested China’s support.

Cambodia’s Defense Ministry said the Savannah port call will include a “cooperation meeting with the commander of the Ream Naval Base,” as well as meetings with provincial officials and “a friendly sports competition between US Navy and Cambodian Navy personnel.”

Cambodian Navy Captain Mean Savoeun, deputy commander of the Ream Naval Base, was among those on the dockside welcoming the Savannah in Sihanoukville. He said he was happy to see the good relations between Cambodia and the US, especially their naval vessels, and he believed the visit would bring more diplomatic cooperation.

The Littoral Combat Ship USS Savannah (LCS 28) was commissioned in 2022 and is the sixth ship to be named in honor of the city of Savannah, according to the US Navy.

“The LCS is a fast, agile, mission-oriented platform designed to operate in littoral environments while being capable of open sea operations,” the Navy said. “The LCS can support forward presence, maritime security, maritime control, and deterrence.

Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.