US says it recognises Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory

Washington, March 21 (IANS) Recognising Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory, the US has said that it "strongly opposes" any unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims across the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The remarks came with Beijing repeatedly asserting that it "never acknowledges and firmly opposes" the "so-called Arunachal Pradesh illegally established by India", following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to the state.

"US recognises Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory and we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims by incursions or encroachments military or civilian, across LAC," State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson, Vedant Patel, said.

Having routinely objected to Indian leaders' visits to the state in the past, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that it "strongly deplored" PM Modi's visit and India's move would "only complicate" the boundary issue.

In response, India rejected Wenbin's comments and said that the Chinese side has been made aware of India's "consistent position on Arunachal several occasions."

This week, New Delhi lashed out at Beijing for "advancing absurd claims" over the territory of Arunachal Pradesh and reiterated that the northeastern state will always remain its "integral and inalienable part" of India.

"We have noted the comments made by the Spokesperson of the Chinese Defence Ministry advancing absurd claims over the territory of the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh," the Ministry of External Affairs said.