S Jaishankar reply to China: Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has given a dose to China for staking claim on Arunachal Pradesh of North East. On Monday (April 1, 2024) in Surat city of Gujarat, he said, “If today I change the name of your house, will it become mine? Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will remain a state of India. Changing the name will do nothing. “It does not happen nor does it have any impact. You all know that our army is deployed there (on LAC). The army people know what they have to do there.”
These comments of S Jaishankar have come at a time when on Monday itself Beijing released the fourth list of 30 new names of various places in the Indian state. During the programme, the journalist had asked the Foreign Minister a question regarding this, on which he showed a mirror to China. However, India has been rejecting Dragon’s efforts to change the names of places in Arunachal Pradesh. He says that this state is an integral part of the country and keeping it an “imaginary” name will not change this reality.
#WATCH , Surat, Gujarat: On China’s claim regarding Arunachal Pradesh, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, “If today I change the name of your house, will it become mine? Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always be a state of India. Changing names does not have an effect…Our army is… pic.twitter.com/EaN66BfNFj
— ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2024
China calls Arunachal Pradesh as ‘Jangnan’
According to China’s state media ‘Global Times’, the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs released the fourth list of standardized geographical names in ‘Jangnan’. China calls Arunachal Pradesh ‘Jangnan’ and claims the state as part of South Tibet. 30 additional names for the region were also posted on the ministry’s official website. This list will be effective from May 1st. The ministry there had released the first list of “standardized names” of six locations in “Jangnan” in 2017, while the second list of 15 places was released in 2021. Then in 2023, another list was released with the names of 11 places.
China’s rhetoric started after Narendra Modi’s visit
China’s latest rhetoric regarding claims on Arunachal Pradesh started when it told the Indian PM Narendra Modi Diplomatic protest was lodged with India regarding the visit of the state. During the tour, PM Modi had dedicated to the nation the Sela Tunnel built at an altitude of 13,000 feet in Arunachal Pradesh. The Chinese Foreign and Defense Ministries had issued several statements presenting China’s claim on the area.
What did USA say on Arunachal Pradesh?
While recognizing Arunachal Pradesh as an Indian part, America had earlier criticized the steps taken by China towards increasing the LAC border. The comments came after Beijing said it does not accept the so-called Arunachal Pradesh established illegally by India following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to the state.
