BackChina's bid to rename fresh sites in Arunachal Pradesh draws sharp reaction from India
Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday said Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable part of India, and China giving its own inventive names will not change the ground reality.
PremiumChina's bid to rename fresh sites within Arunachal Pradesh has prompted a sharp reaction from India and other countries. While the US also strongly opposed China's attempts to advance a claim over Indian territory, the Ministry of External Affairs insisted that ‘nothing would change’ even if India had not received support.
“China has tried to change the names of some places in Arunachal Pradesh. India and China will have to find a solution to this among themselves. If someone supports us, it is a good thing. Nothing will change for us if they don't support us," he said.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had lashed out at China on Tuesday, dubbing it ‘another attempt by the Chinese to claim US, Indian territory’.
“The United States has recognized that territory for a long time and we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to advance a territory claim by renaming localities. And so, again, this is something that we have long stood by a few things," he added.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi also voiced hope that Chinese authorities would allow Indian journalists to continue reporting from the other country. The development came after reports emerged that the visas of two Indian journalists in China had been frozen.
Bagchi assured that there were no limitations or difficulties for Chinese journalists with valid Indian visas to report and cover news in India. He also confirmed that the ministry was in communication with Chinese authorities regarding the matter.
"As regards Indian journalists working in China, we would hope Chinese authorities would facilitate their continued presence and reporting from China," he said.
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Meanwhile, Congress leaders have lashed out at the Narendra Modi government over the latest name change. Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate also claimed that the links that a Chinese-owned company has with the Adani group shows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's special relationship with China. The politician also alleged that PM Modi gave a clean chit to China because of “this relationship" and was yet to break his silence.
“This is totally anti-national. If this is not a threat to national security, then what is?" she asked.
(With inputs from agencies)
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