Amid the India-China border tensions, the US' National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien stated that China had “attempted to seize control of the Line of Actual Control by force,” reported PTI.
Despite diplomatic talks and joint statements by the foreign ministers of both India and China, the standoff continues at Ladakh, increasing tensions between Beijing and New Delhi.
Noting China’s international projects such as the One Belt One Road initiative, O’Brien stated that “impoverished companies” had taken on “opaque and unsustainable Chinese loans to pay Chinese firms employing Chinese labourers to build their infrastructure.” This debt had “eroded” the sovereignty of such countries.
“The time has come to accept that dialogue and agreements will not persuade or compel the People’s Republic of China to change. There’s nothing to be gained from looking the other way or turning the other cheek. We’ve been doing that for far too long,” he added.
Pompeo Calls Out China’s ‘Bullying’
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also condemned China’s behaviour in his interviews after returning to US from the Quad ministerial meetings in Tokyo, reported PTI.
Pompeo stated the West has “allowed the Chinese Communist Party to walk all over us,” and it was time to “push back” by forming a coalition.
He also took cognisance of the escalating tensions at the LAC and China’s ‘bullying.’
“Look, they’ve stacked 60,000 soldiers against the Indians in the north. When the Australians had the temerity to ask for an investigation of the Wuhan virus and where it began, something that we know a lot about, the Chinese Communist Party threatened them. They bullied them,” he stated.
O’Brien also spoke of imposing “tangible cost” compelling China to reduce its ‘harmful’ actions against America and its allies.
Citing an example of one such instance, he stated, “Carriers like Jio in India, Telstra in Australia, SK and KT in South Korea, NTT in Japan, and others have prohibited the use of Huawei equipment in their networks. The Trump administration is investigating and prosecuting the economic espionage aggressively.”
Both Pompeo and O’Brien emphasised on strengthening alliances to understand and combat the Chinese threat together, with India as well as the other Quad countries.
“One important partnership which will be one of the most key partnerships for the United States in the 21st century, India, is thriving," the US National Security Adviser said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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