A bipartisan resolution was introduced in the U.S. Senate on Thursday to recognise Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India, pushing again in opposition to Beijing’s army aggression to vary the established order alongside the Line of Actual Control.
The resolution condemns further Chinese provocations, together with China’s use of army power to vary the established order alongside the Line of Actual Control, development of villages in contested areas, publication of maps with Mandarin-language names for cities and options in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and enlargement of Beijing’s territorial claims in Bhutan.
The resolution says that China claims Arunachal Pradesh as its personal territory, which it calls ‘‘South Tibet’’, and has invoked these claims as part of its more and more aggressive and expansionist insurance policies.
“The United States recognises the state of Arunachal Pradesh not as a disputed territory but as an integral part of the Republic of India, and this recognition is not qualified in any way,” says the bipartisan resolution introduced by Senator Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, and Bill Hagerty, a Republican.
Senator John Cornyn, Co-Chair of the India Caucus, has co-sponsored the resolution.
Pushing again in opposition to Chinese claims that Arunachal Pradesh is its territory, which is part of Beijing’s more and more aggressive and expansionist insurance policies, the Senate resolution reaffirms that the U.S. recognises the McMahon Line as the worldwide boundary between China and the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.
The line that was agreed to by Britain and Tibet as part of the 1914 Simla Accord is known as after Sir Henry McMahon, overseas secretary of the British-run Government of India and the chief negotiator of settling disputes with China.
On December 9, The Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in a recent conflict in the Yangtse space of Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang sector, in the primary such main flare-up after the lethal hand-to-hand fight in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked essentially the most critical army battle between the 2 sides in many years.
“America’s values supporting freedom and a rules-based order must be at the centre of all of our actions and relationships around the world — especially as the PRC (People’s Republic of China) government pushes an alternative vision,” mentioned Merkley, who serves as the Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.
“This resolution makes clear that the US views the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of the Republic of India — not the People’s Republic of China — and commits the US to deepen support and assistance to the region, alongside like-minded international partners and donors,” Merkley mentioned.
At a time when China continues to pose grave and gathering threats to the Free and Open Indo-Pacific, it’s crucial for the U.S. to face shoulder-to-shoulder with our strategic companions in the area — particularly India, mentioned Senator Hagerty after the introduction of the resolution.
“This bipartisan resolution expresses the Senate’s support for unequivocally recognising the state of Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India, condemning China’s military aggression to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control, and further enhancing the US-India strategic partnership and the Quad in support of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific,” Hagerty mentioned.
The resolution commends India for taking steps to defend itself in opposition to aggression and safety threats from China. These efforts embody securing India’s telecommunications infrastructure; analyzing its procurement processes and provide chains; implementing funding screening requirements; and increasing its cooperation with Taiwan in public well being and different sectors.
Among different issues, the resolution serves to additional strengthen the U.S.-India bilateral partnership concerning defence, know-how, economics, and people-to-people ties and promotes enhancing America’s multilateral cooperation with India by way of the Quad, the East Asia Summit alongside its companions in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and different worldwide fora.
Stating that Arunachal Pradesh incorporates the Buddhist city of Tawang, residence to the revered Tawang Monastery and is the birthplace of the sixth Dalai Lama, Tsangyang Gyatso; the resolution says that China has raised diplomatic objections to visits to Arunachal Pradesh by the Dalai Lama and different leaders and has refused to grant residents of the Indian state visas for journey to China.
Provocations by China impede poverty alleviation and financial improvement in Arunachal Pradesh, the place practically 25% of the inhabitants lives in multidimensional poverty based on India’s 2021 National Multidimensional Poverty Index, main many worldwide donors to be cautious of offering help as a result of state’s perceived standing as disputed territory, it mentioned.
