US Senator Marco Rubio, who was one of the Republican Presidential candidates in 2016 before being defeated by candidate Donald Trump in the primaries, has called China’s actions at the LAC in Ladakh “unwarranted & lawless armed aggression by the Communist Party of China”. He also said that New Delhi has made it clear that it will not be bullied by Beijing. British MPs have also raised concerns in British Parliament over China’s “bullying behaviour” in the dispute with India and the “delayed declaration” of Covid-19 and urged an internal review into the UK’s dependence on China with a view to reduce collaboration with the country. On Tuesday, Marco Rubio tweeted that he spoke with Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India’s Ambassador to the US, “to express our solidarity with the people of India as they firmly confront unwarranted & lawless armed aggression by the Communist Party of China. India has made it clear, they will not be bullied by Beijing.” Earlier, US Congressmen Ted Yoho, Ami Bera, Brad Sherman, Lance Gooden and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have slammed Beijing for the ongoing tension. Today I spoke to @SandhuTaranjitS to express our solidarity with the people of #India as they firmly confront unwarranted & lawless armed aggression by the Communist Party of #China. India has made it clear,they will not be bullied by Beijing. — Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) June 29, 2020 In London, Conservative Party MP Ian Duncan Smith raised the issue as part of an urgent question in the House of Commons on Monday on mistreatment by the Chinese government of the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang province. Given Beijing’s appalling record on human rights, their attack on freedoms in Hong Kong, bullying behaviour in border disputes from the South China seas to India, among others, the (British) government will now initiate an internal review of the UK’s dependence on China, with a view to significantly reducing that dependence, Smith asked. UK’s Minister for Asia Nigel Adams responded to say that the government has been regularly raising its concerns with China over various issues. with PTI inputs from London.
