Pangkalan baharu China di Laos bukan ancaman buat Malaysia, kata penganalisis

A new China military base in Laos is not a threat to Malaysia, according to an analyst. Satellite images show construction of the new Chinese military facility at Ban Keun airport in Laos. Analysts say it is too early to view it as a threat without further information from Vientiane. Malaysia should avoid seeing the Chinese military facilities in Laos as a threat until it understands how Beijing intends to use them, said Bait Al Amanah researcher Thaha Albana Turmuzi.

The analyst said Malaysia can gain more information about the facility and the nature of China's military presence there through diplomatic and ASEAN channels, especially whether Chinese troops will be stationed permanently there and how much access China will have to the facilities. The priority should be to enhance cooperation, not to openly pressure Laos on its ties with China, Turmuzi told FMT.

Malaysia should also monitor how the situation evolves, particularly if military and infrastructure cooperation expands. The issue will become more important for Malaysia and ASEAN if Laos continues to host more Chinese military facilities. China controls another joint training and support center at Ream naval base in Cambodia, which gives China direct access to the Gulf of Thailand and the broader South China Sea.

This center, opened last year, was the first Chinese military facility outside China in the region. Malaysian columnist Thomas Daniel noted that it is not yet clear what additional military advantages China will gain from the Laos facility, given the country's border with Yunnan province in China. He said the facility appears to be a smaller but deliberate step to strengthen China's defense and political influence with friendly countries in the region.

The bigger issue for ASEAN is whether this linkage can prevent it from being drawn into an increasingly competitive rivalry between China and the United States. "If China plans to further expand its military presence in the region, which the United States is already doing through permanent or temporary deployments, the issue will become more complex for ASEAN," Daniel said.