'US views Arunachal Pradesh as a part of Republic of India'

Less than a month after the historic visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US a Congressional Senatorial Committee has passed a resolution recognising Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India reported PTIAccording to PTI the resolution was introduced by Senators Jeff Merkley Bill Hagerty Tim Kaine and Chris Van Hollen on ThursdayThe resolution reaffirms that the United States recognises the McMahon Line as the international boundary between the Peoples Republic of China PRC and the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh It pushes back against Chinese claims that large portions of Arunachal Pradesh are PRC territory which is a part of the PRCs increasingly aggressive and expansionist policies a media statement saidThe resolution will now go to the Senate floor for a full voteAmericas values supporting freedom and a rulesbased order must be at the centre of all of our actions and relationships around the world especially as the PRC government pushes an alternative vision said Senator Merkley who serves as the CoChair of the Congressional Executive Commission on ChinaCommittee passage of this resolution affirms that the United States views the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of the Republic of India not the Peoples Republic of China and commits the US to deepen support and assistance to the region alongside likeminded international partners he saidHagerty said at a time when China continues to pose grave and gathering threats to the free and open IndoPacific its critical for the United States to stand shouldertoshoulder with its strategic partners in the region especially India and other Quad countries and push back against the Chinese Communist Partys broader strategy of territorial aggrandisement that it has pursued in the South and East China Seas in the Himalayas and in the southern PacificAs tensions between India and China escalate over their shared border the United States must stand strong in our defense of democracy by supporting a free and open IndoPacific said Senator CornynThis resolution would reaffirm that the US recognises the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of the Republic of India and I urge my colleagues to pass it without delay he addedChina 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 IndiaBeijing routinely protests visits of top Indian leaders and officials to Arunachal Pradesh to reaffirm its claimPTI