China says its cooperation with Cambodia should not be 'over interpreted'

China on Monday asserted that its cooperation with Cambodia should not be "over interpreted" after a US media report said that Beijing has inked a secret deal with Phnom Penh to allow Chinese forces to use the Ream naval base in the strategically placed Southeast Asian country.

Citing officials from the US and allied nations, the Wall Street Journal reported that the pact signed recently gives China exclusive rights to part of the Cambodian naval installation on the Gulf of Thailand, not far from a large airport now being constructed by a Chinese company.

Both sides have not disclosed the details, it added.

Some details of the final deal were unclear, the paper quoted an official as saying but an early draft, seen by US officials, would allow China to use the base for 30 years, with automatic renewals every 10 years after that. China would be able to post military personnel, store weapons and berth warships, according to the draft.

Such an arrangement would boost China's ability to ...