Chinese and Cambodian officials broke ground Wednesday on a contentious naval port expansion project, dismissing American concerns it could provide Beijing with a strategically important military outpost on the Gulf of Thailand.
Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian and other officials donned white gloves before turning over shovels full of dirt to launch the official “modernization” of the Ream Naval Base, which will include a dry dock for ship repairs, an extended pier, a hospital, a workshop and a “reception building.”
