Cambodia says China to hand over two warships

Cambodia announced on Thursday ( Sep. 5 ) that China will soon hand over two warships to strengthen its defenses in response to US concerns that Beijing might increase its military influence in the strategic Gulf of Thailand.

Cambodia is a close ally of Beijing, and Washington has much harboured worries about the Chinese-funded construction of the village’s Ream Naval Center.

Maly Socheata, a spokesperson for the Thai army department, told AFP that China would take the two fresh so-called Model 056C ships next year at the earliest.

She stated that the arteries are being constructed specifically for Cambodia and that they “are anticipated to be finished and delivered to Cambodia in 2025 or afterwards.”

The only thing that needs to be done is to develop Cambodia’s capacity and ability to support search and rescue missions and various humanitarian activities at sea, Socheata continued.