US Senate resolution recognises McMahon Line as international boundary between China and Arunachal

The resolution praises the Indian government's steps to defend itself against Chinese aggression and security threat from the PRC.

The United States has formally recognised the McMahon Line as the international boundary between India's Arunachal Pradesh and China, thereby rejecting Beijing's claim that the northeastern state comes under Chinese territory.

Two United States Senators had last month introduced a bipartisan Senate resolution reaffirming America's recognition of Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India.

As China continues to pose threats to the free and open Indo-Pacific, it is critical for the United States to support its strategic partners such as India, said United States Senators Bill Hagerty and Jeff Merkley in a bipartisan resolution.

"This bipartisan resolution expresses the Senate's support for unequivocally recognizing the state of Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India, condemning China's military aggression to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control, and further enhancing the US-India strategic partnership and the Quad in support of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific," said Senator Hagerty in the press release.

The Senators resolution slams additional PRC provocations, such as the Peoples Republic of Chinas use of military force to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control, construction of villages in contested areas, publication of maps with Mandarin-language names for cities and feature in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and expansion of PRC territorial claims in Bhutan, as per the statement.

It lauds the Indian government's steps to defend itself against Chinese aggression and security threat from the PRC.

These efforts include securing Indias 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.

The resolution serves to further strengthen the US-India bilateral partnership regarding defense, technology, economics, and people-to-people ties and promotes enhancing our multilateral cooperation with India through the Quad, the East Asia Summit alongside our partners in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and other international fora.

The resolution reaffirms that the United States recognizes the McMahon Line as the international boundary between China and the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and pushes back against PRC claims that Arunachal Pradesh is their territory, which is a part of the PRCs increasingly aggressive and expansionist policies.

India and China are locked in a border standoff in eastern Ladakh for over 30 months. The bilateral relationship came under severe strain following the deadly clash in Galwan Valley in Eastern Ladakh in June, 2020.

However, the resolution came after the clash between Indian and Chinese forces in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh, last year.