China is military use? Southeast Asian giant development October 29, 18:31
Where is the aim of China? In Southeast Asia, huge development plans by Chinese companies are about to proceed. The common point is to develop a new city that draws hundreds of thousands of people in areas that are considered to be strategically important. New airports and harbors are under construction, and the US is worried that it will lead to military use. (Asia Director-General, Super-Fujishita / Hanoi Branch Director-General)
Is China a military base in Cambodia?
In August, we noticed the following remarks at a press conference of US Secretary of State Pompeio visiting Bangkok.
“Cambodia denied the report that“ it allowed the construction of Chinese military facilities in the country. The US welcomes Cambodia ’s sovereignty. ”
Ten days before the remark, a leading American newspaper reported that the two countries had secretly agreed to allow the Chinese military to use the naval base in southern Cambodia.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen immediately denied this. Nonetheless, Secretary Pompeio touched on this issue without being asked.
I felt that China, which has become a military base in the South China Sea, is a sign of the US being vigilant about building a military base in the continent of Southeast Asia.
On the 24th of this month (October), two months later, this time Vice President Pence stated the following and stabbed a nail in Cambodia.
“China is trying to create a foothold in ports all over the world in the name of“ One Belt, One Road ”. The front is for commercial purposes, but at some point the purpose may change to military.”
Chinese private company develops hugely
Among the Southeast Asian countries, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos are located between India and China and are called “Indochina Peninsula”.
In this region, along with the development of infrastructure such as high-speed railway with the support of the Chinese government, huge development projects led by Chinese companies are about to proceed one after another.
In particular, the scale of the development is marked by the three developments shown on the map, with an investment of several hundred billion yen to over one trillion yen in planned yen.
I heard that there was an exhibition of such huge developments by Chinese companies and briefing sessions for investors, and in September, I visited the “China ASEAN Expo” in Nanning, southern China.
The letters “One Belt, One Road” around the venue. You can see how Chinese companies are working with the government to expand into Southeast Asia.
The “Dara Sakor Development” in the southern part of Cambodia was exhibited using a large space.
A Chinese company rents 360 square kilometers (about half the area of Singapore) including a 90km coastline for 99 years and develops it as a beach resort and trade and financial center.
In addition to the port, there are plans to develop an international airport where large passenger planes can arrive and depart. However, Kokon province where development is carried out is an area that can be called a frontier in Cambodia, which has long been controlled by the Pol Pot faction.
Is there a possibility of developing a resort by building an airport? I decided to actually visit the site.
Airport construction was progressing on site
About 200 km southwest of Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh. In addition to the jungle as far as the eye can see, occasionally there are private houses and small shops, but few cars pass by. There was an airport construction site ahead.
In the area facing the beautiful sea, there was a land where the jungle was cut and the red soil was exposed. The gate says "Cambodia Dharasakor International Airport Project" in Chinese.
Looking at the process chart, the design and construction are done by a Chinese company. The length of the runway is 3200 meters, and the construction is completed at the end of May next year. It is also written that it connects tourists to beach resorts by connecting directly with Europe and America.
Although there was an expected completion drawing of airport facilities such as runways and terminal buildings, there are almost no cars or people coming in and out, and I do not feel that full-scale construction has begun. The honest impression was whether it would be completed in less than a year.
A building like a hotel was also being built about 20 minutes away from the airport construction site.
A huge development by a Chinese company in a land with only a jungle. I wanted to ask what the locals think, but in the first place I couldn't even find the residents.
Last year, the Hong Kong media reported that construction of a port that was suspected of military use was underway over the development of the region. American Vice President Pence sent a letter to Prime Minister Hun Sen and raised his concerns.
Developers refuse to report
Is there no possibility of military use by China? I asked the person in charge for an interview at Nanning's "China ASEAN Expo" venue, but it was refused. The reason for the refusal to interview was not revealed.
Even the shooting of the exhibition exhibited at the venue was obstructed, and it seemed that the people concerned were sensitive to foreign news media.
Concentrate development in strategically important regions
China's huge developments are all strategically important places.
Cambodia's “Dalasakor Development”, which has been suspected of being used for military use, is carried out in front of the coast of the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea, where China is becoming a military base.
Located in the region close to the border with Myanmar in Thailand, “Shuekkokko Development” is in the middle of the “East-West Economic Corridor”, an Indochina main artery that passes from Vietnam through Laos, Thailand and Myanmar to the Indian Ocean.
According to the website of the development company, etc., 120 square kilometers will be borrowed for 70 years and will be developed as a new city over 15 billion dollars (over 1.6 trillion yen in Japanese yen). The plan is to build an airport with a large terminal building.
Laos' Sea Pandon Development is on the border with Cambodia on the route from China to Laos and Cambodia to the Gulf of Thailand. According to the explanation to investors at the exposition, it will create a new city with a population of 500,000 tourists from all over the world on the land facing the Mekong River.
Some projects question how progress will vary according to the project, but the local government is fully cooperating in all development.
For the three countries in Southeast Asia where development is delayed, the proposal for development with huge Chinese money is hard to resist.
Indochina to “Chinese”
There is a place to foresee the future of this region, where the influence of China is growing year by year. Sihanoukville is a city in southern Cambodia.
Sihanoukville is Cambodia's premier beach resort and was a popular tourist destination for Westerners. However, the city has changed dramatically over the last few years. Chinese casinos and hotels have been built and it looks like a local city in mainland China.
Since the launch of China's enormous economic zone concept “One Belt and One Road”, many tourists and investors seeking new investment destinations have come from China, and there are now statistics that 30% of the residents are Chinese.
Responding to the advance of China from residents
It is said that the local company that sells materials in the construction rush with Chinese money has increased its sales by 8 times in 3 years. A man from a materials company said, “China gave Cambodia and people living in the country a chance to enrich. I expect Chinese investment to continue.”
On the other hand, there has been a reaction to the rapid development. In the middle of the construction rush, a tragedy occurred in June. A building built by a Chinese company collapsed, killing 28 people including Cambodian construction workers. I ignored the warning of the local government and continued construction without permission.
Kom Sir Kong lost his husband who was a construction worker in this accident. Anxious about Chinese companies.
“Chinese companies only think about profits. They continued illegal construction and did not consider the safety of locals.”
Investment by Chinese companies has also brought about social problems, such as a sharp rise in land prices, crimes by Chinese, and illegal dumping of garbage.
In Sihanoukville after the accident, there were incidents where residents attacked the facilities of Chinese companies. In response to the growing anti-Chinese sentiment, the Cambodian government has taken measures such as strengthening crackdown on crime and stricter construction management in response to collapse.
However, investment from China, which accounts for 70% of foreign investment, is indispensable for maintaining economic growth. While paying attention to anti-Chinese feelings, the development itself with Chinese money is a further stance.
What is ahead of the huge development?
While writing this manuscript, news was reported that the Chinese government would provide nearly 10 billion yen in Japanese yen to help improve the capabilities of the Cambodian army. China's influence on Cambodia is increasing year by year on the military side.
There is no evidence to support the concern that the hugely developed infrastructure being promoted by Chinese companies in the Indochina Peninsula will be used by the Chinese military in the future. However, it is certain that facilities such as ports and airports to be built can be easily converted to military use.
What is China looking ahead to such a huge development, which is becoming more influential not only in economics but also in politics and security in Southeast Asia? We would like to continue coverage.
Director General of Asia
Hanoi branch manager
Down the road