Chinese foreign minister arrives in Cambodia to reaffirm ties, Beijing's closest South-East Asian ally

Cambodian Foreign Minister Sok Chenda Sophea (C) welcomes Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) during a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Phnom Penh on Sunday, April 21, 2024. - AFP

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP): Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in Cambodia on Sunday for a three-day official visit to reaffirm ties with Beijing’s closest ally in South-East Asia. His visit is the last stop on a three-nation regional swing that also took him to Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

He is visiting amid foreign concerns about two big Chinese-funded projects in Cambodia - a planned canal and a naval base - that critics allege could aid Beijing’s strategic military interests in Southeast Asia.