China opens first overseas air base in Laos, analysts say

China has opened a joint flight training and support centre at Ban Keun airfield in Laos, which analysts described as its first overseas air force base and a sign that Beijing's foreign military footprint could grow.

The facility is north of the Laotian capital, Vientiane. China and Laos said it was intended to train Laotian air force pilots. China's defence ministry said the site would be maintained for normal operations by both sides and did not target any third party.

Joshua Kurlantzick, a Southeast Asia expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the Laos centre was China's first air force base abroad and that more could follow in countries friendly to Beijing.

Security researcher Collin Koh said training Laotian pilots would require China to place military assets at the site, potentially creating a Chinese military presence. He said Ban Keun could serve as a convenient stopover for China's air force and that Chinese personnel may be stationed there.

Neither government has released details on the personnel or military hardware to be based at the site. Asia military specialist Carl Thayer said the airfield could only support light aircraft and military trainers for now, and warned against treating the development as a crisis.