A New Training Center Rises Near Laos's Capital
China's People's Liberation Army has added another overseas foothold, this time in Southeast Asia, following earlier outposts in Djibouti and Cambodia. According to an official statement from China's Ministry of National Defense, cited by Bloomberg, the new site sits near Ban Keun Airport, roughly 64 kilometers north of the Lao capital Vientiane, and will be run as the "China Laos Joint Support and Training Center."
The stated purpose of the facility is to help train pilots for the Lao People's Army's air force, with the center to be jointly maintained and managed by Beijing and Vientiane going forward. "The construction and use of the relevant facilities is the result of equal consultation and mutual respect between China and Laos," the defense ministry statement said. "The cooperation does not target any third party, and further deepens practical cooperation between the two militaries."
From Djibouti To Cambodia's Coast Now Laos
China established its first overseas military base in Djibouti, on the Horn of Africa, in 2017. In 2025 it followed that with the China Cambodia Joint Logistics and Training Center at Cambodia's Ream Naval Base. Both moves drew concern from Washington and other Western governments about Beijing's expanding global military footprint. The new center in Laos marks a third such outpost, and unlike the coastal logistics hubs in Djibouti and Cambodia, this one is inland and focused specifically on air force training.
The Site Sits On Ground Once Used By The US During The Vietnam War
The area north of Vientiane where the new center is located has its own Cold War history. It was once home to a rough airstrip that American forces called Lima Site 44, which the US used for air and logistics support to resupply troops fighting in the Vietnam War. It remains unclear whether the newly built China Laos center sits directly on top of that former American airfield site.
Decades Of Close Ties Between Two Communist Governments
Laos, a one party communist state, has maintained unusually close relations with Beijing since the 1990s, rooted in shared ideology. Cooperation between the two countries has broadened well beyond the military sphere in recent years. The China Laos Railway, which opened in 2021 and links the two countries, has both boosted Laos's economy and tightened regional connectivity between Beijing and Vientiane, laying some of the groundwork for the closer security ties now taking shape.
