India Rejects Pakistan-China Boundary Commission as ‘Legally Baseless’
What Happened
India has rejected the newly operationalized Pakistan-China Boundary Joint Commission, saying it has“no legal basis” and that there is no recognized boundary between Pakistan and China involving Indian territory. The Ministry of External Affairs reiterated that the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh are integral parts of India and said Pakistan has no authority to enter into arrangements concerning territories under its “illegal and forcible occupation.” India also reaffirmed that it has never recognized the 1963 China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement, under which Pakistan ceded territory in the Shaksgam Valley to China, calling the pact “illegal and invalid.”
Key Takeaways
The latest dispute revives India's long-standing objections to the 1963 Pak-Sino Agreement, which India argues involved territory that legally belongs to it. New Delhi says any boundary cooperation between China and Pakistan concerning these areas cannot affect India's sovereignty and has called on Pakistan to vacate territories it considers illegally occupied.