China, which refers to The area is like Zangnanhe claims Arunachal Pradesh is part of southern Tibet. India rejects these claims, saying that Arunachal Pradesh has always been part of India.
Wednesday, US Department of State weigh in on this issue.
“The United States recognizes Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory, and we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to strengthen territorial claims through incursions or encroachments, military or civilian, across the Line of Actual Control,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said.
The Line of Actual Control is the demarcation that separates territory controlled by India from that controlled by China.
“I see this statement as a reflection of continued US efforts to fully align with India in its competition with China,” Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center, told CNBC.
Kugelman noted that the United States usually refrains from commenting on some Indian border disputes, such as the dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir. But in this case, Washington is signaling its solidarity with New Delhi — “in the same way it has made efforts, including through intelligence sharing, to help India deter Chinese aggression on its northern border.”
Earlier this month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Sela Tunnel – the world's longest double-lane tunnel built at an altitude of over 13,000 feet, which is located in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, drawing sharp reactions from Chinese officials. .
Border tensions between India and China have escalated in recent years. In a major escalation in 2020, a clash between the two sides was killed 20 Indian soldiers And Four Chinese soldiers. China last year 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh have been renamedA move strongly opposed by India.
First Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, Deputy Director-General of the Information Office of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense He said in a statement Days after the inauguration of the road tunnel, “China never acknowledges and strongly opposes India’s illegal creation of the so-called ‘Arunachal Pradesh’.”
Last week, the Chinese Ministry of Defense reiterated its claim over the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh.
This week, the Indian Foreign Ministry responded to Zhang's comments, saying that the state of Arunachal Pradesh “is and always will be an integral part of India.”
Randhir Jaiswal, Ministry of External Affairs of India The spokesman said in an official statement The Chinese Ministry of Defense made “ridiculous claims” about the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and that “repeating baseless arguments in this regard does not give such claims any legitimacy.”
Regarding the US standing by India, Harsh V. said: “It shows how far India-US relations have come,” said Pant, vice president of studies and foreign policy at the Observer Research Foundation, a New Delhi-based think tank.
“Even when it comes to the issue, which was very sensitive, like the border dispute between India and China, the United States today is openly standing with India,” he told CNBC.
— CNBC's Naman Tandon contributed to this story.
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