Allies, Including India, Bearing Cost Of China's 'Harmful Behaviour': US In First Indo-Pacific Report

The White House report stated that China is combining its economic, diplomatic, military, and technological might as it seeks to become the world's most influential power.

New Delhi: The Biden administration's first region-specific report on the strategic Indo-Pacific region has stated that US allies and partners, including India, are bearing much of the cost of China's "harmful behaviour".

The report on US' Indo-Pacific Strategy puts forth the way President Joe Biden wants to firmly anchor the country's position in the Indo-Pacific region, strengthening the same while supporting India's rise and regional leadership.

"We will continue to build a strategic partnership in which the United States and India work together and through regional groupings to promote stability in South Asia; collaborate in new domains such as health, space, and cyberspace; deepen our economic and technology cooperation; and contribute to a free and open Indo-Pacific," the White House statement read.

"We recognise that India is a like-minded partner and leader in South Asia and the Indian Ocean, active in and connected to Southeast Asia, a driving force of the Quad and other regional fora, and an engine for regional growth and development," the White House added, as quoted by PTI.

Chinese Coercion & Aggression Most Acute In Indo-Pacific: US Report

According to the US report on the Indo-Pacific strategy, China is combining its economic, diplomatic, military, and technological might as it pursues a sphere of influence in the Indo-Pacific and seeks to become the world's most influential power.

The Chinese coercion and aggression span the globe, but it is most acute in the Indo-Pacific, it stated.

The White House report further pointed out that "From the economic coercion of Australia to the conflict along the Line of Actual Control with India to the growing pressure on Taiwan and bullying of neighbours in the East and South China Seas, our allies and partners in the region bear much of the cost of the People's Republic of China's (PRC) harmful behaviour".

It stressed that China, in this process, is also undermining human rights and international law, including freedom of navigation, as well as other principles that have brought stability and prosperity to the Indo-Pacific.

"We will strengthen the international system, keep it grounded in shared values, and update it to meet 21st-century challenges. Our objective is not to change China but to shape the strategic environment in which it operates, building a balance of influence in the world that is maximally favourable to the United States, our allies and partners, and the interests and values we share," it added.

India Faces 'Very Significant Challenges': Senior Official

According to PTI, a senior administration official, on condition of anonymity, stated that India was facing "significant challenges".

At a White House background briefing, the senior official said that India is in a very different place, in many ways than Australia and other countries.

"But India faces very significant challenges. China's behaviour on the Line of Actual Control has had a galvanising impact on India. From our standpoint, we see tremendous opportunities in working with another democracy - with a country that has a maritime tradition that understands the importance of the global commons - to advance critical issues in the region," the senior administration official said, as quoted by PTI.

"There is tremendous appreciation of the importance and the challenges of strengthening the engagement with India and a recognition that India is a critical strategic partner, and a desire to continue building on the very good work of previous administrations to significantly broaden and deepen that relationship," the official said.

US Relations With India

In response to a question, the senior official told reporters that the last four administrations have played a significant role in improving relations with India.

"With regard to India, we very explicitly highlight the importance of - the importance of what the last four administrations have all played a very important role in advancing, which is the much greater US engagement, much improved US relations with and much closer US partnership with India, the official said, as quoted by PTI.

"Obviously, India's role in the QUAD I think is a very significant element of that, including the ability to speak frankly, about issues in the region, to work together to deliver essentially public goods that address the challenges in the region, and to enhance ways in which we can coordinate," the official added.

It was stated that there are two key elements to the new approach. The first being the goal to strengthen the US role in the region. Second, the US seeks to build the collective capacity to rise to 21st-century challenges and seize opportunities, be it pertaining to climate, PRC behaviour, or preparing for the next pandemic and recovering from the current one.

(With Agency Inputs)