China Reasserts Territorial Claims On Shaksgam Valley After India’s Objections

International

oi-PTI

China
on
Monday
reaffirmed
its
territorial
claims
over
the
Shaksgam
Valley
in
the
backdrop
of
India’s
objections,
stressing
that
the
Chinese
infrastructure
projects
in
the
area
are
“beyond
reproach”.

India
last
Friday
criticised
China’s
infrastructure
development
projects
in
the
Shaksgam
Valley,
saying
it
reserves
the
right
to
take
necessary
measures
to
safeguard
its
interests
as
it
is
an
Indian
territory.

Pakistan
illegally
ceded
5,180
sq
km
of
Indian
territory
in
the
Shaksgam
Valley
to
China
in
1963
from
areas
illegally
occupied
by
it.

“Shaksgam
Valley
is
Indian
territory.
We
have
never
recognised
the
so-called
China-Pakistan
‘boundary
agreement’
signed
in
1963.
We
have
consistently
maintained
that
the
agreement
is
illegal
and
invalid,” External
Affairs
Ministry
spokesperson
Randhir
Jaiswal
said.

“We
also
do
not
recognise
the
so-called
China-Pakistan
Economic
Corridor,
which
passes
through
Indian
territory
that
is
under
forcible
and
illegal
occupation
of
Pakistan,”
he
said.

Jaiswal
said
that
the
entire
Union
Territories
of
Jammu
and
Kashmir
and
Ladakh
are
an
integral
and
inalienable
part
of
India.
“This
has
been
clearly
conveyed
to
Pakistani
and
Chinese
authorities
several
times,” he
added.

Reacting
to
Jaiswal’s
comments,
Chinese
Foreign
Ministry
spokesperson
Mao
Ning
told
a
media
briefing
here
that
“the
territory
you
mentioned
belongs
to
China”.

“It’s
fully
justified
for
China
to
conduct
infrastructure
construction
on
its
own
territory.
China
and
Pakistan
in
the
1960s
signed
a
boundary
agreement
and
delimited
the
boundary
between
the
two
countries,
which
is
the
right
of
China
and
Pakistan
as
sovereign
countries,” she
said.

On
India’s
criticism
of
the
CPEC,
Mao
repeated
Beijing’s
narrative
that
it
is
an
economic
cooperation
initiative,
aimed
at
promoting
local
socioeconomic
development
and
improving
people’s
livelihood.

“The
China-Pakistan
boundary
agreement
and
CPEC
do
not
affect
China’s
position
on
the
Kashmir
issue
and
the
position
remains
unchanged,” she
said.

China’s
official
stand
on
the
Kashmir
issue,
as
often
reiterated
by
Beijing,
is
that
“Jammu
and
Kashmir
dispute
is
left
over
from
history,
and
should
be
properly
and
peacefully
resolved
in
accordance
with
the
UN
Charter,
relevant
UN
Security
Council
resolutions
and
bilateral
agreements”.

The
1963
agreement
ceding
the
territory
of
Pakistan-occupied
Kashmir
(POK)
was
crucial
for
Pakistan
and
China
as
it
provided
a
common
boundary
for
them,
which
otherwise
would
have
had
no
borders.

The
agreement
also
has
a
clause
that
stipulates
that
after
the
settlement
of
Kashmir
dispute
between
Pakistan
and
India,
the
sovereign
authority
will
reopen
negotiations
with
the
government
of
China
to
sign
a
formal
boundary
treaty.