US Sanctions Chinese State-Owned Firm Over Land Seizure, Corruption in Cambodia
The U.S. Treasury Department on Sept. 15 sanctioned a Chinese state-controlled firm for seizing land..
The U.S. Treasury Department on Sept. 15 sanctioned a Chinese state-controlled firm for seizing land from Cambodians for projects aimed at advancing Beijings geopolitical ambitions.
Union Development Group Co., or UDG, is constructing a $3.8 billion resort called Dara Sakor, a state-backed investment zone spanning 90,000 acres and would cover around 20 percent of the countrys coastline.
The project, which would include the largest airport in Cambodia once completed, has been touted as a flagship project in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—the Chinese regimes massive global infrastructure strategy to pump up geopolitical power.
Cambodian government spokesperson Phay Siphan has said the resort could be converted into a military base, the Treasury Department noted.
The sanction on UDG was imposed under the Global Magnitsky Act, which enables the United States to target gross human rights abusers and corrupt foreign officials. The action would block any U.S. transaction with the firm and freeze property belonging to the company on U.S. soil.
The Tuesday statement said that the Chinese company had falsely registered as a Cambodian-owned entity to acquire a 99-year lease, but then “reverted to its true ownership and continued to operate without repercussions,” adding that it conducted some of the activities through corrupt individuals, including Kun Kim.
Kim, a former Cambodian army chief, who was also placed on the Treasury Departments sanction list, was described as being “instrumental in the UDG development and reaped significant financial benefit from his relationships with UDG.”
“Todays action demonstrates how the Chinese Communist Party co-opts companies to expand its influence, including by working through corrupt officials to use military force against innocent people in a blatant attempt to secure illicit financial gains,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a Sept. 15 statement.
The Dara Sakor resorts potential military use, he said, “would go against Cambodias Constitution and could threaten Indo-Pacific stability, possibly impacting Cambodias sovereignty and the security of our allies.”
The UDG and the Cambodian military had cleared the land through violent means, officials added.
“UDG-funded activities have forced Cambodians from their land and devastated the environment, hurtingRead More – Source
