Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:
Cambodia breaks ground on China-funded canal and says it
will be built 'no matter the cost' (1/2)
Sopheng Cheang And Aniruddha Ghosal
Sun, August 4, 2024 at 11:45 p.m. PDT·4 min read
PREK TAKEO, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia broke ground Monday on a controversial, China-funded canal to link the capital Phnom Penh to the sea, despite environmental concerns and the risk of straining ties with neighboring Vietnam.
The $1.7 billion, 180-kilometer (111 miles) Funan Techo canal is planned to connect the country’s capital with Kep province on Cambodia’s south coast, giving it access to the Gulf of Thailand. Cambodia hopes the 100-meter (328 feet)-wide, 5.4-meter (17.7 feet)-deep canal will lower the cost of shipping goods to the country's sole deep-sea port, Sihanoukville, and reduce reliance on Vietnamese ports.
The project highlights the outsized role that China plays in Cambodian politics and economy. Meanwhile, concerns remain about the potential environmental impacts of the canal, especially on the flow of the Mekong River, which feeds millions of people across six countries through its fish and the agriculture that it sustains.
The project has Vietnam worried, both about the effect on its Mekong Delta rice-growing and about Cambodia moving out of its orbit, said Nguyen Khac Giang, an analyst at Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.
“There is a concern that most of the Cambodian exports might be diverted from the current route, crossing the Vietnamese border to Vietnamese ports and moving away from that to Cambodian ports,” he said.
But Hanoi has expressed its concerns quietly, if at all, Giang said. Given the "complex historical legacy" between Cambodia and Vietnam — despite strong bilateral ties, the two nations have a contentious relationship — Vietnam is reticent to openly criticize Cambodia lest it be seen as impinging on its neighbor's sovereignty, he said.
Analysts say that the infrastructure project is in part an effort by Cambodia’s ruling elite to invigorate support for Hun Manet, who last year took over the wheel of government from his father, Hun Sen, who led Cambodia for 38 years.
The government declared Monday — also Hun Sen’s birthday — a holiday so Cambodians could participate in the “celebration in a joyful, crowded and proud manner.” Thousands of people wearing t-shirts with photographs of the father and son began gathering at the canal site, that was covered in Cambodian flags. Billboards promoting the economic benefits of the canal dominated the countryside.
(to be continued)
Translation
柬埔寨PREK TAKEO（美聯社）— 儘管有環境問題以及與鄰國越南關係緊張的風險，柬埔寨週一破土動工了一條有爭議的、中國資助的運河，該運河將首都金邊與大海連接起來。
耗資 17 億美元、全長 180 公里（111 英里）的 Funan Techo 運河計劃將柬埔寨首都與柬埔寨南海岸的白馬省連接起來，使其能夠通往泰國灣。柬埔寨希望這條寬100公尺（328英尺）、深5.4公尺（17.7英尺）的運河能降低運往該國唯一深海港口西哈努克港的貨物成本，並減少對越南港口的依賴。
該計畫凸顯了中國在柬埔寨政治和經濟中所扮演的巨大角色。同時，人們仍然擔心運河對環境的潛在影響，特別是對湄公河流量的影響，湄公河的流動, 透過漁業和農業養活了六個國家的數百萬人。
新加坡ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute分析師Nguyen Khac Giang表示，該計劃讓越南感到擔憂，既擔心其對湄公河三角洲水稻種植的影響，也擔心柬埔寨脫離其軌道。
他說：“有人擔心，柬埔寨的大部分出口可能會從目前的路線轉移，即由去穿過越南邊境到達越南港口，改為轉移到柬埔寨港口出口。”
但Giang說，河內已經悄悄地表達了自己的擔憂（以任何方式）。他說，鑑於柬埔寨和越南之間「複雜的歷史遺產」- 儘管兩國關係密切，但兩國之間的關係存在爭議 - 越南不願公開批評柬埔寨，以免被視為侵犯鄰國的主權。
分析人士表示，該基礎建設計劃在某種程度上是柬埔寨統治菁英為鼓舞對洪馬奈的支持而做出的努力。洪馬奈由曾領導柬埔寨 38 年的父親洪森接掌政府。
政府宣布週一（也是洪森的生日）為假期，以便柬埔寨人可以「用歡樂、熱鬧和自豪的方式參加慶祝活動」。數千名穿著印有父子照片的 T 恤的人開始聚集在運河現場，運河上覆蓋著柬埔寨國旗。宣傳運河經濟效益的廣告看板遍布鄉間。
（待續）
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