India considers Arunachal Pradesh an integral part of the country, while China claims it as part of southern Tibet …reports Asian Lite News
China’s Foreign Ministry stated that India has no right to develop the area China calls South Tibet, responding to a Reuters report about New Delhi’s plans to accelerate hydropower projects in the border region.
“South Tibet is China’s territory,” a ministry spokesman said, declaring India’s establishment of what it calls Arunachal Pradesh on Chinese territory as “illegal and invalid.”
On Tuesday, Reuters reported that India plans to spend $1 billion to expedite the construction of 12 hydropower stations in the northeastern Himalayan state. India’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on China’s statement.
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India considers Arunachal Pradesh an integral part of the country, while China claims it as part of southern Tibet and objects to Indian infrastructure projects there.
Last week, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Kazakhstan, where they agreed to intensify efforts to resolve border issues.
The meeting between between the two leaders holds significance in light of a four-year-long frozen relations between the two countries over the standoff in Eastern Ladakh.
India and Chinese relations hit a low except for trade ever since the Eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020. The standoff was followed by violent clashes in the Pangong Tso (lake) area near Galwan.
Since May 2020, both India and China have held 21 rounds of Corps Commander-level talks to resolve the standoff with the 22nd meeting due to be held soon.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan was attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi skipped the event and India was represented by EAM Jaishankar.
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