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A powerful United States senatorial committee on Wednesday, June 21, 2023, is set to consider a bipartisan resolution to recognise Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India, pushing back against China's military aggression to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will consider the resolution for discussion on a day when Prime Minister Narendra D Modi lands in Washington, DC on a three-day official State visit.
The resolution condemns additional Chinese provocations, including Beijing's use of military force to change the status quo along the LAC.
It slams China for the construction of villages in contested areas, publication of maps with Mandarin-language names for cities and features in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and expansion of Beijing's territorial claims in Bhutan.
The bipartisan resolution was introduced in February this year by Senators Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, and Bill Hagerty, a Republican. Senator John Cornyn, co-chair of the India Caucus, has co-sponsored the resolution.
Observing that India has taken steps to defend itself from aggression and security threats from China, including by securing its telecommunications infrastructure and conducting investment screening, the resolution unequivocally recognises the state of Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of the Republic of India and supports the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
It condemns China's use of military force to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control, as well as additional provocations including the construction of villages in contested areas, expansion of territorial claims in Bhutan, and publication of maps assigning Mandarin-language names to cities and features in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.
China refers to Arunachal Pradesh as Zangnan. Beijing claims Arunachal Pradesh as South Tibet, a claim firmly rejected by the external affairs ministry which has asserted that the state is an 'inseparable part of India'.
Beijing routinely protests visits of Indian leaders and officials to Arunachal Pradesh to reaffirm its claim.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee resolution commends India for taking steps to defend itself against aggression and security threats from China, including securing its telecommunications infrastructure, examining its procurement processes and supply chains, implementing investment screening standards, and expanding its cooperation with Taiwan in public health and other sectors.
It supports India's continued defence modernisation, including its diversification away from countries that fail to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other nations.
It applauds India for increasing its development efforts in Arunachal Pradesh, including improving border infrastructure, connectivity, and energy security, including renewable energy production.
The bipartisan resolution commits to deepening US assistance to the region through the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development using funding mechanisms such as the Countering Chinese Influence Fund.
It also encourages like-minded international partners and donors to bolster their assistance efforts to Arunachal Pradesh.
The resolution supports further strengthening the US-India bilateral partnership, including through enhanced defence interoperability and information-sharing especially for early warning systems, the United States-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology, further economic cooperation, and our broad and long-standing people-to-people ties.
Among other things, the resolution promotes enhancing our multilateral cooperation with India through the Quad, the East Asia Summit alongside our partners in the Association for Southeast Asian Nations, and other international fora.