At a time when President-elect Joe Biden’s Foreign Policy remains unclear, especially his stance vis-a-vis China, it seems that Biden won’t adopt a starkly different Foreign Policy from the one adopted by Trump. In a significant development, the US Congress has passed a $740 billion defence policy bill which calls out China for its aggression against India in the backdrop of the Ladakh stand-off.
It is not every day that a US defence policy bill openly condemns Chinese aggression against India at the Eastern LAC. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), was passed by both the Democrat-controlled US House of Representatives and the Republican-led Senate.
American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi led the efforts to adopt a resolution language which seeks to condemn China for its aggression against India. Krishnamoorthi’s measure was garnered rare bipartisan support which further indicates that the change in Presidency won’t alter the US’s equations with its allies in the Indo-Pacific region as American remained steadfast behind its ally India.
The bill expressed “significant concern” over China’s repeated border aggression with India. The NDAA said that China “should work with” India to defuse the situation at the border through existing diplomatic mechanisms while asking the former to refrain from unilaterally changing the status quo or settling disputes through coercion or force.
The NDAA which has been passed by Congress for almost the last six decades will become law if Donald Trump signs the bill. Commenting on the Chinese aggression at the Eastern LAC, Krishnamoorthi said, “Violent aggression is seldom the answer, and this is especially true for the Line of Actual Control, which is the disputed border region that separates the People’s Republic of China from India.”
He added, “By including my resolution language in the NDAA and signing that legislation into law, the United States government will send a clear message that China’s military provocations of India will not be tolerated. The United States is committed to standing with our allies and partners like India in resolving the border standoff using diplomatic means.”
The bill also made note of Chinese attempts to expand its territory which it termed baseless at the expense of the countries surrounding the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and Bhutan. The bill states that such attempts are not only destabilising but also inconsistent with international law.
Such strong wordings in the defence policy bill is a welcome move and a much-needed relief for the US’ allies especially in the Indo-Pacific region as Biden’s China policy continues to be up in the air.