The Indian Express
February 22, 2015
China on Saturday lodged a protest through India’s Ambassador in Beijing against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh.
A day after China first raised an objection to the visit, Indian Ambassador Ashok Kantha was called in by the Chinese Foreign Ministry and told that the visit “undermined China’s territorial sovereignty, right and interests”, the Xinhua news agency reported.
Modi had visited Itana-gar on Friday to attend the statehood day celebrations, becoming the first PM in 28 years to do so.
On Friday, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying, in response to a question on Modi’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh, had said, “China holds a consistent and clear stance on the China-India boundary question. It is a fact known to all that there are substantial disputes over the eastern part of the China-India boundary. The Chinese government has never recognised the so-called “runachal Pradesh”.
According to Xinhua, China’s Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin told Kantha said “such an act by the Indian side artificially amplified differences between the two countries on the border issue and thus went against the principles and consensus that the two sides reached on properly addressing the issue”.
While China routinely protests and criticises high-level Indian visits to Arunachal Pradesh, the twin protests over Modi’s visit came in the midst of the two countries improving relations with a host of initiatives to improve bilateral ties.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Beijing early this month and held talks with President Xi Jinping and other officials, including discussions on Modi’s proposed visit to China in May.
Besides, Special Representatives for border negotiations on both sides —- National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi —- are expected to meet in the next few weeks to hold the 18th round of talks on the dispute.
