UPDATE 2-Cambodia denies deal to allow armed Chinese forces at its naval base

(Adds China comment; paragraphs 8-11)
WASHINGTON, July 21 (Reuters) - China will be able to place
armed forces at a Cambodian naval base under a secret pact
between the two nations, the Wall Street Journal said on Sunday,
although Cambodian officials denied such a deal had been struck.
The agreement, reached this spring but not made public,
gives China exclusive access to part of Cambodia's Ream Naval
Base on the Gulf of Thailand, the Journal said, citing U.S. and
allied officials familiar with the matter.
Such an arrangement would boost China's ability to assert
contested territorial claims and economic interests in the South
China Sea, challenging U.S. allies in Southeast Asia.
Chinese and Cambodian officials denied such a pact existed,
the Journal said.
"This is the worst-ever made up news against Cambodia,"
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen told the pro-government news
site Fresh News on Monday.
"No such thing could happen because hosting foreign military
bases is against the Cambodian constitution."
Cambodian defense ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat told
Reuters the report was "made up and baseless".
In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said,
"As I understand it, the Cambodia side denied this."
But he declined to respond to repeated questions whether
China also denied the report.
"China and Cambodia are traditionally friendly neighbors,"
Geng told a news briefing.
"We have cooperated in various areas. Our cooperation is
open, transparent, and mutually beneficial and equal. I hope the
relevant parties do not overinterpret it."
Hun Sen's strongest regional ally, China has poured billions
of dollars in development assistance and loans into Cambodia
through two-way frameworks and its Belt and Road initiative.
The initiative, unveiled by Chinese President Xi Jinping in
2013, aims to bolster a sprawling network of land and sea links
throughout Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
It has attracted a flood of Chinese commercial ventures in
Cambodia, including casinos and special economic zones.
This month the U.S. Defense Department suggested China may
be attempting to gain a military foothold in Cambodia, in a
letter to Cambodia asking why the nation had turned down an
offer to repair a naval base.
In a statement, the State Department urged Cambodia to
reject such an arrangement, saying the nation had a
"constitutional commitment to its people to pursue an
independent foreign policy".
It added, "We are concerned that any steps by the Cambodian
government to invite a foreign military presence in Cambodia
would threaten the coherence and centrality of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations in coordinating regional
developments, and disturb peace and stability in Southeast
Asia."
Cambodia denied reports last November that China had been
lobbying it since 2017 for a naval base that could host
frigates, destroyers and other vessels of the People's
Liberation Army Navy.