Arunachal Integral Part of India, Condemn Chinese Military Aggression: US Senate

The resolution also pushes back at China's expansionist claims that Arunachal Pradesh is part of its territory.

The resolution reaffirms that the US recognises the McMahon Line as the international boundary separating China and Arunachal Pradesh.

Image used for representational purposes. 

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

According to a bipartisan Senate resolution which sees Arunachal Pradesh as an integral piece of India, the United States officially recognised the McMahon Line as the international boundary between Arunachal Pradesh and China.

Senator Bill Hagerty, who, along with Senator Jeff Merkley, introduced the resolution in the US Senate, said:

“At a time when China continues to pose grave and gathering threats to the Free and Open Indo-Pacific, it is critical for the United States to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our strategic partners in the region, especially India.”

“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,” he added on Tuesday.

Following one of the largest clashes between India and China along the Line of Actual Control, in the Eastern Sector, since 2017, the resolution reaffirms that the US recognises the McMahon Line as the international boundary separating the People’s Republic of China and the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.

Moreover, the resolution also pushes back against the PRC’s claims that Arunachal Pradesh is part of its territory, a part of its aggressive expansion policies.

Merkley also said that the US values “supporting freedom and a rules-based order” and must remain at the forefront of their geo-political actions around the world, “especially as the PRC government pushes an alternative vision.”

The resolution comes when US-India bilateral relations and multilateral cooperation continue to strengthen in several areas like defence, technology, economics, and people-to-people ties, especially through groups like the Quad, the East Asia Summit and ASEAN.

"This resolution makes clear that the United States 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 deepening support and assistance to the region, alongside like-minded international partners and donors," he added, news agency PTI reported.