PM Modi’s Arunachal Visit: India slams China for its comments

India has slammed China on its comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Arunachal Visit and has reiterated that the “State of Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India.”

The spokesperson of the ministry of external affair Raveesh Kumar said, “Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other parts of India. This consistent position has been conveyed to the Chinese side on several occasions.”

China had strongly reacted to Prime Minister’s Arunachal Pradesh Visit calling on the Indian side to “cherish the momentum” in ties and “refrain from actions” that may lead to “escalation of disputes”.

In a statement on Chinese’s foreign ministry website, the Spokesperson Hua Chunying said,”China urges the Indian side to bear in mind the common interests of the two countries, respect the interests and concerns of the Chinese side, cherish the momentum of improvement in bilateral relations, and refrain from any action that may lead to the escalation of disputes or complicate the boundary question.”

Hua said  “The Chinese government has never recognized the so-called “Arunachal Pradesh” and is firmly opposed to the Indian leader’s visit to the East Section of the China-India boundary.” and said, “China’s position on the China-India boundary question is consistent and clear-cut.”

PM Modi in Arunachal Pradesh today. He laid the foundation stone for the construction of Greenfield Airport at Hollongi & Sela Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh. He also dedicated new DD Channel for Arunachal Pradesh – DD Arun Prabha at IG Park, Itanagar & laid a foundation stone for a permanent campus of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) at Jote, Arunachal Pradesh.

China and India have been trying to reset the ties after the 2-month long Doklam crisis in 2017 that had impacted the relationship. Chinese forces had tried to build a road on the Doklam plateau in Bhutan in 2017 which was stopped by the Indian Army leading to a 2-month long standoff between the 2 countries.

Last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping for the 4 times in 2018, starting with the informal summit in Wuhan in April. Chinese president Xi Jinping will visit India this year for the 2nd informal summit.