Chinese aggression another reason to strengthen India-US ties: US lawmakers

The latest Chinese aggression against India is yet another reminder of why a strong Indo-US security partnership is crucial to their national security, top American lawmakers have said.

The Chinese and Indian troops were engaged in a fresh clash in the Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh's Tawang sector on December 9, in first such major flare-up after the deadly hand-to-hand combat in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.

"China's most recent aggression in Arunachal Pradesh is yet another reminder of why a strong security partnership with India is crucial to the national security of the United States and our allies," the India Caucus Co-Chairs said in a statement.

"This event marks yet another threat of the People's Republic of China to the Indian territory, including China's premeditated aggression on the Line of Actual Control in 2020 which saw the death of approximately 20 Indian troops," it said.

"As co-chairs of the India Caucus, we have worked for years to deepen the US-India bilateral relationship. The India Caucus built on this progress by including the Khanna-Sherman-Schweikert amendment in the House-passed FY23 NDAA, highlighting the immediate and serious regional border threats that India faces from China," said the statement.

The co-chairs applauded the inclusion of Section 1260 in the FY23 Final Conference Report to strengthen military cooperation in critical areas like intelligence gathering, fifth generation aircraft, and emerging technologies to deter China's aggression and encroachment in the Indo-Pacific region.

"The US and India share a unique bond as the world's oldest democracy and the world's largest democracy, and as co-chairs of the Caucus we will continue to grow our security engagement and bilateral ties," said the statement.