CAMBODIA said it was not a satellite country to China despite receiving much assistance from it.
Prime Minister Hun Sn said this after concerns were raised that a naval base in country has been handed over to the Chinese military for its exclusive use.
It also comes after a United States-funded facility in the Ream Naval Base was demolished last month.
Hun Sen said he has asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send a diplomatic note to all foreign embassies to explain the reasons behind the demolition.
According to a Khmer Times report, he also expressed gratitude to the Chinese government for helping to build roads, bridges and other infrastructure in Cambodia.
"But some, when they saw China helping to build our roads through non-refundable assistance and loans, they accused Cambodia of being a satellite to China."
"I want to ask you back if China did not help to build this road, who else would have come to build it?" he added.
He said if anyone could prove that other countries can do it instead of China, he would step down.
Hun Sen added that while some roads and bridges were built by Japan and South Korea, China has built thousands of kilometres of roads in the country.
In denying reports that the Chinese have exclusive use of the naval base, he said Cambodia had allowed ships of various countries to use the Ream military port, though they have to request prior permission because the port is for military use, not a freight port.
"Any country can ask for permission to dock their ships to be refuelled or to land to conduct a drill with Cambodia or do other works with Cambodia. We welcome them," he said.
US Embassy spokesman Chad Roedemeier said he was disappointed that Cambodian military authorities have chosen to demolish a maritime security facility that is only seven years old.
He described the facility as a "sign of US-Cambodia relations."
"We have concerns that razing the facility may be tied to plans for hosting China's military assets and personnel at Ream Naval Base," he said.
"Such a military presence would negatively impact the US-Cambodia bilateral relationship and be disruptive and destabilising to the Indo-Pacific region."
"We would welcome a dialogue about Cambodia's needs, and to identify how we can support infrastructure at Ream that would benefit an independent Cambodia and all nations supportive of a free and open Indo-Pacific."
Cambodian authorities said the demolished Tactical Command Headquarters would be relocated to Koh Preap area, some 30km away.
"This new location will facilitate increased operational efficiency through its own docking facilities, simplify liaison between relevant national institutions, provide freedom for further infrastructure expansion and promote cooperation with international partners," it added.
The Phnom Penh Post reports political analyst Lao Mong Hay saying that the 1991 Paris Peace Accords and Cambodia's constitution guaranteed Cambodia's neutrality.
It also banned army bases and the presence of foreign forces on Cambodian land.
He said it is proper for the government and the co-chairs of the Paris International Conference on Cambodia including France and Indonesia to set up a neutral committee on Cambodia.