Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reiterated on Thursday that Shaksgam Valley is an integral part of India, while addressing Chinese activities near the Siachen Glacier.
He affirmed that India has lodged protests against China’s unlawful efforts to manipulate facts concerning the Shaksgam Valley. Additionally, in response to China’s construction of a road in a region of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir near the Siachen Glacier, the MEA spokesperson reiterated India’s stance.
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“The Shaksgam Valley is a part of the territory of India,” Jaiswal said.
He further emphasised that India has never accepted the “China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement”.
“We have never accepted the so-called China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement of 1963 through which Pakistan unlawfully attempted to cede the area to China, and have consistently conveyed our rejection of the same. We have registered our protest with the Chinese side against illegal attempts to alter facts on the ground,” he added.
The spokesperson reiterated that India reserves the right to take necessary measures to safeguard its interests. “We have been protesting as and when required, we have always taken a very strong stand on it,” Jaiswal said.
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Last year, Nepal-based online magazine Pardafas reported that China has invested in building military infrastructure in the Shaksgam Valley, potentially posing a military threat to Indian forces in Ladakh in the medium term.
Over the past few years, China has maintained military pressure on India through repeated incursions across the Line of Actual Control (LAC). While this pattern has garnered recognition from the international community, a study conducted by Northwestern University suggests that China’s incursions are strategically aimed at establishing a permanent Chinese presence in these regions.
Border transgressions and incursions are well-documented across all three sectors of the 3,488 km-long border officially shared by India and China. However, according to Pardafas, even more alarming military aggression has been observed in Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK).
This refers to China’s construction of military infrastructure and roads in the Shaksgam Valley, a trans-Karakoram tract ceded by Pakistan under the terms of the 1963 Boundary Agreement.
Furthermore, China and Pakistan’s collaboration on the boundary in the Karakoram area of PoK, covering a distance exceeding 590 km, violates India’s traditional and legal rights in PoK. Pardafas reported that China has escalated its efforts by developing military infrastructure and roads in the disputed region, presenting an imminent threat to India.
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