National Defense

Air Base Uncle Sam Once Used For Covert Ops Now In Beijing’s Hands

China News Service / Wikimedia Commons

China is establishing a new military base at a Vietnam-era airfield once used by the CIA.

The China-Laos Joint Logistics Airbase officially opened in late September, The New York Times reported Thursday, indicating another step in China’s efforts to assert military dominance in Southeast Asia. A 1.2-mile runway, 16 military vehicles, and eight small aircraft are visible in satellite images reported by Reuters.

China has the world’s largest military by number of active-duty personnel. Though the size of the People’s Liberation Army has skyrocketed, it has had limited international presence until now–a naval facility in Cambodia and a naval support center in Djibouti.

The base is located in Ban Keune, approximately 30 miles north of the Laotian capital, Vientiane.

“Ban Keun is significant because it appears to be China’s first openly acknowledged overseas military facility for air power,” Tamkang University in Taipei Professor Ying Yu Lin told the New York Times, adding that the new facility “sits in the center of the Indochinese peninsula, and could enable the Chinese Communist Party to easily project air power across surrounding areas.”

The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

Laos has a growing dependency on China. Annually, Laos exports tens of millions of dollars worth of iron ore and rare earth minerals to China, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity. Laos is categorized as being in “debt distress” by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Around half of this debt is owed to China. Such a debt can serve as a leverage point for allowing a military base to be built in the country.

During the Vietnam War, this airbase was run by “Air America,” a CIA cover. It was used to conduct medevac (medical evacuation) missions, reconnaissance, and covert operations against the VietCong.