ICT Report Urges Global Action on Tibet, Citing Threats to International Security
By Tenzin Chokyi
DHARAMSALA, 18 Nov: The International Campaign for Tibet’s (ICT) latest report urges global actors to confront China’s growing threat to international peace and security, an escalation the report attributes largely to China’s colonial occupation of Tibet, a region of immense geopolitical, economic, cultural, and military significance.
The report, titled “Why Tibet? Strategic Imperatives for International Peace and Security,” published on 17 November, argues that the United States and other major powers must recognise that Tibet’s location—situated at the intersection of three nuclear-armed states in south Aisa—places the occupied region at the crossroads of South Asia’s security dynamics, with significant ramifications for the strategic interests of the United States, Europe, and other global powers.
“Developments in Tibet, whether related to military infrastructure, energy and resource extraction, border management, or political stability, have direct implications for the security strategies of countries in the region, the United States, and relevant stakeholders in the global community. This unique positioning makes Tibet central to the broader advancement of international security,” stated the report.
Noting that China’s so-called ‘development’ in occupied Tibet comes at the cost of systemic oppression and the exclusion of the Tibetan people—who are deprived of their right to self-determination—the report reminds the international community of the moral obligations inherent in the region’s strategic importance.
ICT calls on the US and like-minded governments around the world to actively support the vision of Tibet as a zone of peace, as articulated in the 14th Dalai Lama’s Five Point Peace Plan.
The report further urges policymakers to implement existing Tibet-related legislation, including the US 2024 Tibet-China Dispute Act by countering China’s disinformation on Tibet, affirming Tibet’s legal status as unresolved, and enhancing direct engagement with the CTA at senior diplomatic levels.
Amid China’s aggressive Sinicization policies, which have pushed Tibetan identity to the brink of extinction, the report also recommends allocating additional assistance to the Tibetan government-in-exile to protect and promote Tibetan language, religion, culture, and environment, thereby helping sustain the Tibetan identity.
It recommends the US and allies push for stronger cooperation with regional partners in South Asia to counter China’s abuses in Tibet and growing influence. It also calls for legally restricting foreign companies from investing in Chinese projects in occupied Tibet that contribute to militarisation or exploit the plateau’s resources and for formally recognising China’s rule in Tibet as a form of colonialism that threatens the survival of Tibet’s unique civilisation.
