The US House of Representatives has unanimously passed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), lambasting China’s belligerence against India in Galwan Valley, according to reports by Indian news agency – PTI.
To India’s Shock, China Now Claims The Entire Galwan Valley & Refuses To Leave
The NDAA amendment, moved by Congressman Steve Chabot along with Indian-American lawmaker Ami Bera and passed on Monday, said that India and China should work towards de-escalating the situation along the Line of Actual Control.
China and India were recently engaged in a bitter border conflict in Galwan Valley, near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. To India’s astonishment, Beijing has reportedly claimed the entire Galwan Valley, which even exceeds the Chinese territorial claims of 1962.
Passed unanimously by the House of Representatives, it said that the hostility of Beijing in and around disputed regions, such as the Line of Actual Control, the South China Sea, the Senkaku Islands, is of significant concern.
The bipartisan amendment states Congress’ opposition to Chinese assault against India in the Galwan Valley on the India-China border and expresses its concern toward the growing territorial assertiveness of China. China has used the distraction of the coronavirus to attempt to seize territory belonging to India, as well as to press its territorial claims in the South China Sea, it said.
“India is a critical, democratic partner in the Indo-Pacific,” Chabot said in a statement after the House passed the NDAA amendment. “I am a strong supporter of our bilateral relationship, and I stand with India, and all our partners in the region, as they confront China’s hostile acts of aggression,” he said.
“I am proud to be joined by Congressman Ami Bera, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, and Nonproliferation, to bring this important amendment to the floor in a bipartisan manner,” he added.
