The joint Cambodia-China Golden Dragon 2019 military exercises will be carried out on a larger scale than this year’s in Kampot province’s Chol Kiri district in March, a Royal Cambodian Armed Forces commander said yesterday.
General Ith Sarath, deputy commander and chief of staff of RCAF, said that he discussed having a bigger-scale exercise with Colonel Sheng Ynlai, a representative of China’s PLA, at the general command headquarters on Monday.
“The 15-day joint military drill will involve counter-terrorism and humanitarian rescue exercises and there will be an increase in troops and equipment from both sides,” Gen Sarath said, noting that details are still being worked out.
Col Sheng said that the exercise will further cement close ties between the armed forces of China and Cambodia.
Both sides are expected to share their experiences in counterterrorism tactics and rescuing people during disasters.
This year’s Golden Dragon exercise started on March 17, a date chosen to celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations between Cambodia and China.
The Golden Dragon is a dry-run of the required response to an outside threat to the security and population of the Kingdom.
It aims to strengthen the alliance of both military forces in combating terrorism; maintain stability; assist in disaster relief; and, in a general sense, safeguard peace and security nationally and globally.
Defence Ministry spokesman General Chhum Sucheat could not be reached for comment yesterday.
