US says it is with India on border dispute with China

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Western Theater Command of its People's Liberation Army's (PLA) had conducted military exercises in Tibet. (Photo courtesy: cgtn.com)

(TibetanReview.net, Oct03’20) – The United States has made it clear Oct 1 that it was opposed to China’s aggression and territorial assertions against India across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as the latters’ prolonged faceoff across the Ladakh border appears set to continue through the coming harsh winter.

Arunachal Pradesh is Indian territory and the United States strongly opposes unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims by incursions, be it military or civilian, across the LAC, the ANI Oct 2 cited a US State Department official as saying.

China has never ruled Arunachal Pradesh in any period of its history and its only basis for laying claim to this territory is its annexation of Tibet which India acquiesced to in a 1954 Sino-India trade agreement.

“We have – our position on some parts of the border for sure is explicitly clear. For nearly six decades, the US has recognized that Arunachal Pradesh is Indian territory. We strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims by incursions, by military or civilian incursions across the established LAC,” the state department official was quoted as saying during a Foreign Press Center briefing.

Concerning India-US bilateral relations, the senior official has said, “At a time when India is facing substantial security challenges, the growth in our defense partnership is exceptionally important. This partnership includes defense sales, particularly our offers of advanced US weapon systems, as a demonstration of our commitment to India’s security and sovereignty.”

“Interoperability between our military services has reached unprecedented levels, as demonstrated by the Tiger Triumph exercise last year and the Indian Navy’s recent passage exercise with the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group in the Indian Ocean.”

Referring to the upcoming the 2+2 ministerial between the two countries later this year, the unnamed senior official has said, “There is virtually no dimension of both countries’ national power that’s not going to be addressed in some way through the 2+2 dialogue that we have, or with the associated meetings.”

Also, on the upcoming Quad meet in Tokyo next month, the official has said, “One final highlight on the multilateral front is our increasingly strong Quad partnership with Australia, India, and Japan. We look forward to the upcoming meeting of Quad foreign ministers on October 6th and we welcome additional opportunities for engagement such as having Australia join the Malabar naval exercise.”

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