PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is visiting Cambodia for talks with Cambodian leader Hun Sen.
The trip started on Sunday seeks to strengthen ties and promote the rule of law in Cambodia, a country in Southeast Asia that is a close ally of China and Japan.
Kishida and Hun Sen issued a joint statement condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine and calling for “an immediate cessation of the use of force and the withdrawal of military forces from the territory of Ukraine”.
They emphasized that “neither the threat nor the use of weapons of mass destruction will ever be acceptable.”
After China, Japan is the largest donor to Cambodia, and has financed bridges, roads, ports, electricity and water plants there.
But Japan and the United States have expressed their disquiet over the growing projection of Chinese military might in the area. Particularly in Cambodia, Washington is concerned about the Chinese construction of the Ream Naval Base and the possibility that Russia will establish a military base there.
Ream borders the Gulf of Thailand, near the South China Sea, where China has been involved in maritime territorial disputes. Cambodia is often politically supportive of China, and in return, China's support allows Hun Sen to ignore allegations in the West of human rights violations.