Defence
'Absurd Claims': Jaishankar Hits Back At China After It Releases New Map Claiming Arunachal, Aksai Chin
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has stated that China has a habit of releasing such maps and emphasised that including other countries' territories in their maps holds no significance.
He said this in an interview with news channel NDTV.
According to Jaishankar, China has a history of putting out maps that include territories that do not belong to them.
He dismissed China's claims, stating that their government is firm in its stance on territorial boundaries. He further asserted that making baseless claims does not grant ownership of other nations' territories.
Jaishankar further clarified that the disengagement talks along the Line of Actual Control with China's new map are not linked.
India has rejected China's latest "standard" map that lays claim to Arunachal Pradesh, known as South Tibet in Beijing, and Aksai Chin, which was occupied during the 1962 war.
The release of the map, which occurred between the G20 Summit in Delhi and the recent informal conversation between China's Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the BRICS Summit in South Africa, does not affect the ongoing discussions.
During the BRICS Summit, PM Modi expressed India's concerns regarding unresolved issues along the LAC and other areas along the India-China border to Mr. Jinping.
In addition to the disputed territory of Arunachal Pradesh, China's map also includes Taiwan and parts of the South China Sea as part of its own territories.
However, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei all have competing claims over these areas.
China's Ministry of Natural Resources released a map during celebrations for Surveying and Mapping Publicity Day and the National Mapping Awareness Publicity Week. The map, which was posted by China's Global Times, was compiled using the drawing method of national boundaries for China and other countries.
China has attempted to rename places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which is a disputed territory between the two countries.
In April, the Indian government rejected China's attempt to rename 11 locations within Arunachal Pradesh, also known as 'Zangnan'. This was the third time China had made such a move, with previous attempts in 2018 and 2021.
India firmly asserted that Arunachal Pradesh has always been and will always be an integral part of the country.
Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson for the Indian government, stated that they were aware of China's latest attempt and categorically rejected it. Bagchi emphasised that Arunachal Pradesh is an inseparable part of India and attempts to assign new names to its locations would not change this reality.
India-China clashes in Arunachal Pradesh have been a cause for concern. The clash in the Tawang sector in December, which coincided with the border standoff in eastern Ladakh, led to increased military preparedness in the Arunachal Pradesh sector.
Despite these tensions, India remains steadfast in its assertion that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of the country.
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