India Rejects “Unwarranted References” on Jammu and Kashmir in China-Pakistan Joint Statement
NEW DELHI, May 26: In response to media queries regarding unwarranted references to Jammu and Kashmir in a joint statement between China and Pakistan, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday said India categorically rejects the “unwarranted references.”
In a statement, the Ministry said “India categorically rejects unwarranted references to Jammu and Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan.”
According to a joint statement issued at the end of Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to China, the Pakistani side had briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments on the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. China, for its part, said the Jammu and Kashmir dispute was left over from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements.
The MEA statement further said, “India’s position is consistent and well known to the concerned parties. The Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh have been, are and will always an integral and inalienable parts of India. No other country has the locus standi to comment on the same.”
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in the statement, said “As regards the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, some of which are in India, we resolutely oppose and reject any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistan’s illegal and forcible occupation of these territories, impinging on India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. This has been clearly conveyed to Pakistani and Chinese authorities several times.”
The statement concluded “We have also seen references to the so-called ‘trans-boundary water resources cooperation’ between China and Pakistan. As the two countries do not share any boundary, the question of so-called ‘trans-boundary water resources cooperation’ does not arise. India has never recognised the so-called 1963 boundary agreement between Pakistan and China.”
(Manas Dasgupta)
