Beijing: China has destroyed 30,000 world maps printed in the country for export for not mentioning Arunachal Pradesh and Taiwan as part of Chinese territory, media reported on Tuesday. China claims the north-eastern Indian state of Arunachal as part of South Tibet. China routinely objects to Indian leaders visiting Arunachal to highlight its stand. India says the State of Arunachal Pradesh is its integral and inalienable part and Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other parts of the country.
The two countries have so far held 21 rounds of talks to resolve the border dispute covering 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC). China also claims the estranged island of Taiwan as part of its territory that must be reunified with the mainland, even by force. The world maps were meant for export to an “unspecified country”, state-run Global Times reported.
“What China did in the map market was absolutely legitimate and necessary, because sovereignty and territorial integrity are the most important things to a country. Both Taiwan and South Tibet are parts of China’s territory which is sacred and inviolable based on the international law,” Liu Wenzong, professor from the department of International Law of China Foreign Affairs University was quoted as saying.
The US has accused China of “systematically” impeding access to Tibet by imposing restrictions that have barred diplomats and foreign journalists from visiting the remote Himalayan region, drawing a strong reaction from Beijing which warned that Washington’s interference in its internal affairs would harm bilateral ties.
