New Delhi: Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Tuesday (January 13) said that the 1963 boundary agreement between Pakistan and China was illegal, reiterating India’s claim over the Shaksgam Valley. While addressing the media ahead of Army Day, General Dwivedi slammed China for building infrastructure in the valley.
"India considers the 1963 agreement between Pakistan and China as illegal. Therefore, any activity in the Shaksgam Valley is a concern. We do not approve of it," the Army Chief said.
General Dwivedi further stated that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had already issued a statement on the matter. He added that India does not accept the joint statement by China and Pakistan on CPEC 2.0.
China On Sakshgam Valley:
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Earlier on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning rejected India’s claim to the Shaksgam Valley in Jammu and Kashmir.
"The territory you mentioned belongs to China. It's fully justified for China to conduct infrastructure construction on its own territory," Mao said when asked about border issues and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The spokesperson further stated that Beijing and Islamabad had signed a boundary agreement in the 1960s and demarcated borders between the two countries, and that the settlement was an exercise of the rights of two sovereign states.
The Shaksgam Valley borders China’s Xinjiang Province to the north, the Northern Areas of PoJK to the south and west, and the Siachen Glacier region to the east.
MEA's Statement On Sakshgam Valley:
Earlier, on January 9, India rejected China’s infrastructure build-up through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the Shaksgam Valley, terming it "illegal and invalid", while noting that the region is an "integral and inalienable part" of India.
During a weekly press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India has never recognised the "so-called" China-Pakistan boundary agreement of 1963 or the "so-called" CPEC.
"Shaksgam Valley is an Indian territory. We have never recognised the so-called China-Pakistan boundary agreement of 1963. We have consistently maintained that the agreement is illegal and invalid. We do not recognise the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor either, which passes through Indian territory, which is under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan," Jaiswal said.
He also reaffirmed that the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral and inalienable part of India.
"We have consistently protested with the Chinese side for its attempts to alter the ground reality in the Shaksgam Valley. We further reserve the right to take necessary measures to safeguard our interests," the MEA spokesperson added.
