- India opposes attempts to alter illegally occupied territories’ status.
India has rejected the Pakistan-China Boundary Commission, saying the mechanism has no legal basis and cannot have any bearing on India’s sovereignty over Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday dismissed the commission after Pakistan announced that it had activated the joint body with China to strengthen border management, conduct joint surveys and promote trade. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reiterated India’s longstanding position that there is no India-recognised border between Pakistan and China, and opposed any arrangement concerning territories it considers illegally occupied by Pakistan.
MEA Rejects Commission
Jaiswal said India had seen reports about the Pakistan-China joint commission but rejected it, maintaining that Pakistan and China do not share a legally recognised border in the context of territories claimed by India.
“The entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh were, are and will always remain integral and indivisible parts of India,” Jaiswal said.
The MEA maintained that Pakistan has no right or basis to enter into any arrangement concerning territories that are under its illegal and forcible occupation.
‘Vacate Indian Territories’
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry had earlier posted about the functioning of the Pakistan-China Boundary Joint Commission following a meeting in Islamabad. According to Pakistan, the two countries activated the commission to work on border management, joint surveys and measures aimed at boosting trade.
Rejecting the development, Jaiswal said India has never recognised the 1963 China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement, describing it as “illegal and invalid”. He called on Pakistan to immediately vacate the Indian territories that New Delhi says remain under its illegal and forcible occupation.
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India Warns Against Status Change
Jaiswal said India would firmly oppose any attempt to alter the status of the territories or legitimise what it describes as illegal occupation.
“Such attempts impinge on India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said.
The MEA further warned that any purported border cooperation between China and Pakistan concerning Indian territories would be “completely unacceptable”. It also stressed that such arrangements would have no impact on India’s sovereignty over the territories.
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