Why China’s new air force base in Laos could rattle Vietnam

AI Summary

China-backed air force training and support facility has opened at Ban Keun Airport in Laos, with the stated aim of strengthening Lao pilots' expertise. Observers say the facility could unsettle Vietnam as Laos balances defence ties with China, Russia and Vietnam.

A newly opened China-backed air force training centre in Laos could unsettle Vietnam, even as it aims to modernise Vientiane’s military and balance defence ties among Beijing, Moscow and Hanoi, observers say. China’s National Defence Ministry said last Tuesday that the joint support and training facility at Ban Keun Airport in the Laotian capital would strengthen the expertise of local air force pilots and was “not directed against any third party”. “The establishment and operation of the two...