Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/us-calls-cambodia-opaque-over-chinese-activity-navy-base-2021-10-13/
Chinese construction at Cambodia’s naval base has been spotted through satellite images. The United States wants Cambodia to disclose what is happening and accuses them of lacking transparency over what they are doing. U.S. embassy spokesperson Chad Roedemeier said that foreign military presence in Cambodia violates their constitution and is a threat to regional security. The U.S. wants the Cambodian government to be more transparent with the intent of this construction on the Naval Base. The Cambodian people also deserve to know what is happening, because this could have a big impact on their country. However, the Cambodian government denies these allegations, saying that China is just helping to repair the naval base.
This article is important because it would be a big deal if China actually was putting its military there. Because the United States has had a military presence in this region for decades, if China were to have troops in Cambodia, that would be a step towards China’s growing power. This is also significant because though the U.S. and Cambodia have diplomatic relations, their relationship has not been as strong lately. This might have something to do with China’s growing relationship with Cambodia. That could make it possible for Cambodia to allow for a Chinese military presence. Even if Cambodia is not allowing Chinese forces at the base, and that China is just helping them build, it still displays China’s growing influence.
Currently we have a unipolar international system with the U.S. being the power node. Although, China is in the conversation of becoming a power node with their rising influence and power, which would switch the current unipolar system to a bipolar system where the U.S and China are sharing power. This event displays the possibility of a change in the system because it shows how China has the potential to gain a lot of power if they actually have a military presence in Cambodia. This is especially because it would mean gaining military presence in a region where the United States has military presence.