Will Cambodia’s concerns of ‘rocking China boat’ affect Asean unity over naval drills?

Planned exercises in the contested South China Sea will look at maritime security and be the first time the Southeast Asian bloc has held them, amid Beijing’s growing clout

However, Cambodia has not yet agreed and says ‘several other countries’ have not responded, with analysts suggesting some nations could simply observe

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Members of the Indonesian Navy disembark from boats during a patrol for May’s Asean summit, which was hosted by Jakarta. The bloc is due to hold regional drills in September, its first since it was formed in 1967. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 9:30am, 22 Jun 2023Updated: 3:56pm, 22 Jun 2023

As Cambodia threatens Southeast Asian unity by remaining indecisive about taking part in the first-ever region-wide joint naval exercise, analysts said the drills should still go ahead even without the participation of one or more countries.

Indonesian military chief Yudo Margono said after a recent meeting between Asean defence chiefs in Bali that the 10-member regional body would hold its first joint military drills in the South China Sea.

The exercises will focus on maritime security and rescue operations, and will not involve combat operations.

On Tuesday, the Indonesian military said members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) had held an initial planning conference for the joint drills, which will take place from September 18 to 25.

However, soon after that initial announcement, General Vong Pisen, commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, released a statement saying that Cambodia had yet to agree to the drills.

He said that while Indonesia had proposed the idea as the rotating chair of the bloc, Cambodia and “several other countries” – which were not named – had not responded.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen with Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe in Phnom Penh in November. Photo: Weibo