Cambodia has initiated the construction of a $1.7 billion canal, funded by China, to link the capital city of Phnom Penh to the Gulf of Thailand. The 180-kilometer Funan Techo canal aims to reduce shipping costs to the country's deep-sea port in Sihanoukville and decrease reliance on Vietnamese ports.
The project has raised environmental concerns, particularly regarding its potential impact on the Mekong River, which supports millions of people across six countries through fishing and agriculture. Vietnam, a neighboring country, has expressed worries about the canal's effects on its Mekong Delta rice production and the shifting of Cambodian exports away from Vietnamese ports.
