China reaffirmed its territorial claim over the Shaksgam Valley, saying infrastructure construction there is legitimate, after India criticised the projects and asserted the area is Indian territory.
Beijing maintained that the boundary agreement and CPEC do not affect its stance on Kashmir.
Beijing said it should be resolved peacefully in line with UN resolutions and bilateral agreements.
China on Monday reiterated its territorial claims over the Shaksgam Valley amid India’s objections, asserting that Chinese infrastructure projects in the region are "beyond reproach".
India on Friday criticised China’s infrastructure development activities in the Shaksgam Valley, stating that it reserves the right to take necessary measures to safeguard its interests, as the area is Indian territory.
Pakistan illegally ceded 5,180 sq km of Indian territory in the Shaksgam Valley to China in 1963 from areas under its illegal occupation.
"Shaksgam Valley is Indian territory. We have never recognised the so-called China-Pakistan 'boundary agreement' signed in 1963. We have consistently maintained that the agreement is illegal and invalid," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
“We also do not recognise the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which passes through Indian territory that is under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan,” he added.
Jaiswal said the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral and inalienable part of India. "This has been clearly conveyed to Pakistani and Chinese authorities several times," he said.
Responding to Jaiswal’s remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing that “the territory you mentioned belongs to China”.
"It’s fully justified for China to conduct infrastructure construction on its own territory. China and Pakistan in the 1960s signed a boundary agreement and delimited the boundary between the two countries, which is the right of China and Pakistan as sovereign countries,” she said.
On India’s criticism of the CPEC, Mao reiterated Beijing’s position that it is an economic cooperation initiative aimed at promoting local socio-economic development and improving people’s livelihoods.
"The China-Pakistan boundary agreement and CPEC do not affect China’s position on the Kashmir issue and the position remains unchanged," she said.
China’s official stance on Kashmir, frequently reiterated by Beijing, is that “Jammu and Kashmir dispute is 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 1963 agreement ceding territory in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was significant for both Pakistan and China as it provided a common boundary between the two countries, which otherwise would not have shared a border.
The agreement also includes a clause stating that after the settlement of the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan, the sovereign authority will reopen negotiations with China to conclude a formal boundary treaty.
(with PTI inputs)
