US Congress Passes NDAA, Calls Out Chinese Aggression at LAC

India and China have been locked in a border standoff since May along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

Image of India, US, China maps used for representation.

(Photo: The Quint/Arnica Kala)

The US Congress passed the National Defense Authorisation Act (NDAA) on Tuesday, 15 December, which includes a $750 Billion defence policy bill, and called out the Chinese aggression at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) against India, reported PTI.

India and China have been locked in a border standoff along the LAC in eastern Ladakh since May, with tensions soaring in June when troops on both sides clashed in the Galwan Valley, leading to the death of 20 Indian soldiers. The countries have not reached a resolution yet despite several rounds of talk.

The US House of Representatives and the Senate has included a provision led by Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi's resolution language, urging the Chinese government to end its military aggression against India along the LAC, reported PTI.

“By including my resolution language in the NDAA and signing that legislation into law, the United States government will send a clear message that China's military provocations of India will not be tolerated,” PTI quoted Krishnamoorthi as saying.

He further added, “Violent aggression is seldom the answer, and this is especially true for the Line of Actual Control, which is the disputed border region that separates the People's Republic of China from India”.

Krishnamoorthi said, “The United States is committed to standing with our allies and partners like India in resolving the border standoff using diplomatic means,” quoted PTI.

Attempts by China to advance baseless territorial claims, including those in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and with respect to Bhutan, are destabilising and inconsistent with International Law, says the bill, according to PTI.

Trump Threatens To Not Pass the NDAA

The provision was passed with strong bipartisan support and will become a law once outgoing President Donald Trump signs it. However, he had threatened to veto the bill earlier, unless it repealed an internet free-speech law, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which was created 30 years ago to protect social media platforms from being liable for what their users post.

This bill, thus far, has been passed by the Congress for the past 59 years, reported PTI.

(With inputs from PTI)