Speaking on the recent incident at Galwan valley, American Senator Mitch McConnell said on Thursday that, for the sake of grabbing territory, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China appears to have instigated the most violent clash between the two Asian giants.
“On land, for the sake of grabbing territory, the PLA appears to have instigated the most violent clash between China and India since those nations went to war in 1962,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a major foreign policy speech on the floor of the House.
“Needless to say, the rest of the world has watched with grave concern this violent exchange between two nuclear states. We are encouraging de-escalation and hoping for peace,” McConnell said.
The clash in Galwan Valley on Monday night is the biggest confrontation between the two militaries since their 1967 clashes in Nathu La in 1967 when India lost around 80 soldiers while over 300 Chinese army personnel were killed.
“But the world could not have received a clearer reminder that the PRC is dead-set on brutalizing people within their own borders, challenging and remaking the international order anew in their image to include literally redrawing the world map,” he said.
He said the Chinese Communist Party has used the pandemic they helped worsen as a smokescreen for ratcheting up their oppression of Hong Kong and advancing their control and influence throughout the region.
“At sea, they have stepped up their menacing of Japan near the Senkaku Islands,” McConnell said. “In the skies, Chinese jets have intruded into Taiwanese airspace four separate times in a matter of days,” the top GOP Senator said in his speech.
The security law introduced by China would ban subversion and other perceived offences in the business hub, which saw major pro-democracy protests last year, and Beijing says the new law is needed to restore stability.
But critics see it as potential knock-out blow for Hong Kong’s freedoms and autonomy, and the Group of Seven foreign ministers on Wednesday urged China to reconsider the proposed security law.