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China objects to VP Venkaiah Naidu’s Arunachal visit, MEA rejects comments

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu had recently visited the north eastern state of Arunachal Praedh and addressed a special session of the state assembly. However, this did not go down well with China, who has raised objections to the vice president’s visit. China has said that it firmly opposes the visit as it never recognised the state.

China has become habitual of objecting to Indian leaders’ visits to Arunachal Pradesh.

Naidu had visited Arunachal on October 9 and said that the North-Eastern Region(NER) is now decisively breaking from its troubled past and is witnessing a new era of resurgence.

“I am glad to note that the vital North-Eastern Region has firmly resolved to make a break from such a past so as to script a new future by moulding the present in that direction. The plethora of infrastructure projects completed and in progress and the evidence of socio-economic development is a clear pointer in this regard,” he said addressing a special session of the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, while replying to a question by the official media on Naidu’s visit, said that the country has never recognised the state.

“China’s position on the boundary issue is consistent and clear. The Chinese government has never recognised the so-called Arunachal Pradesh established unilaterally and illegally by the Indian side and is firmly opposed to the Indian leader’s visit to the area concerned,” Zhao said.

“We urge the Indian side to earnestly respect China’s major concerns, stop taking any action that would complicate and expand the boundary issue and refrain from undermining mutual trust and bilateral relations,” he added.

India has maintained that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India. “Indian leaders routinely travel to the State as they do to any other state of India,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

“Objecting to the visit of Indian leaders to an Indian state does not stand to reason and understanding of Indian people,” MEA spokesperson said.

The remarks come even as the 13th round of talks between India and China over the military standoff concluded without any results. During the meeting, the Indian side made constructive suggestions for resolving the remaining areas but the Chinese side was not agreeable and also could not provide any forward-looking proposals.

“The meeting thus did not result in resolution of the remaining areas,” the Army said, in its statement on the 13th round of corps commander level talks held in Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC on Sunday.

Source: dnaindia.com