China opens a joint airfield in Laos with construction ongoing and eyes on its military role
Satellite images show construction is still underway, and analysts say the runway already can handle fighter jets.
- In September, China opened a joint airfield in Ban Keun, Laos, establishing the China-Laos Joint Support and Training Center alongside the China-Laos Friendship Aviation Academy to train Laotian air force pilots.
- Satellite imagery reveals a 2,000-meter runway capable of supporting fighter jets, representing China's first foreign military facility focused on air power and part of Beijing's broader strategy to project force beyond its borders.
- The Laos air force currently operates only seven combat-capable aircraft, yet the facility could be supplied by a new high-speed rail line connecting China's Yunnan province to Vientiane, supporting future operations.
- Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, said the airfield does not "radically alter any balance of power or give China much ability to project force toward the Strait of Malacca that it doesn't already have."
- Defense Ministry spokesperson Rear Adm. Surasant Kongsiri told the Associated Press that Thailand does not view the facility as a threat, though analyst Evan Laksmana suggests it could complicate United States strategy for defending Taiwan.
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Satellite images confirm that China has established its first military air base in neighboring Laos, The Times reports. The Ban Keun base was officially opened in late September and will be jointly operated by China and Laos.
China Projecting Wider Power with Strategic New Air Base in Laos
The United States has long known that projecting the power of its democracy abroad requires access to air bases far beyond our borders. Like many other things, China is a focused student of America, so it should come as no surprise that the Communist
Defense News
Military TimesAirport training site in Laos extends China’s clout in Southeast Asia
China’s design to use a Laotian airport for joint military training has put much of Southeast Asia on guard about how far the PLA will extend its reach.
A recently constructed runway north of the Laotian capital Vientiane is causing international concern. According to the governments of China and Laos, the new complex in Ban Keun is a ‘joint support and training center’. However, Western military analysts and regional diplomats fear that Beijing is secretly establishing its first permanent air force base on the Southeast Asian mainland.
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