WASHINGTON: The United States is closely monitoring the India-China border line and does not want the situation to escalate, a senior Trump administration official said.
The official told reporters during a conference call on Friday, ahead of next week’s India-US Ministerial 2 + 2 in New Delhi, that the Trump administration was providing support to India through defense sales, military exercises. sets and information exchange.
“As a government we are covering the situation in the Himalayas closely, and it is understandable. We certainly want to ensure that the situation does not escalate,” the official said.
“All of these are areas in which we cooperate with the indigenous people, and not only with regard to the tensions in the Himalayas,” the official said.
India and China have been locked in a bitter border clash in eastern Ladakh since the beginning of May that has significantly strained bilateral ties.
Both sides have held a series of diplomatic and military talks to resolve the dispute. However, no progress has been made to end the confrontation.
China tried unsuccessfully to occupy Indian territory on the southern shore of Lake Pangong in the last week of August.
In response to a question, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the United States was maintaining an ongoing dialogue with India on further cooperation. Southeast Asia, and not just about the South China Sea.
“And we encourage their participation. That cuts through development investments, runs through security cooperation, and then also involves presence. Therefore, we welcome more Indian involvement in Southeast Asia in all three areas,” the official said. .
The senior official’s remarks came amid growing global concern over China’s expansionary behavior.
The evolving situation in the Indo-Pacific region in the wake of China’s growing military flexion has become an important topic of conversation among major world powers.
The United States has been favoring making Quad a security architecture to control China’s growing assertiveness.
China is involved in highly controversial territorial disputes in the South and East Seas of China. Beijing has also made substantial progress in militarizing its artificial islands in recent years.
Beijing claims sovereignty over the entire South China Sea. But Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan have counterclaims. In the East China Sea, China has territorial disputes with Japan.
The South China Sea and the East China Sea are said to be rich in minerals, oil, and other natural resources. They are also vital to world trade.
Although the United States does not claim the disputed waters, it has challenged China’s growing territorial claims in the South China Sea by strategically deploying warships and combat aircraft to assert freedom of navigation and overflight patrols in the region. vital.
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