China Asks India to Stop 'Meaningless Playing Up' of Border Issue

The Chinese Foreign Ministry's statement comes in response to reports in the Indian media that Beijing had protested the Indian army's presence in Arunachal Pradesh as "transgression." Arunachal Pradesh is recognized by India as one of its states, while China claims it as part of South Tibet.

New Delhi (Sputnik): Just ahead of the high profile bilateral visits by Indian leaders to China lined up for this month and the next, Beijing has asked its neighbor to stop "meaningless playing up" of border issues. In a strongly worded statement calling on India to cooperate in upholding peace and stability in the border areas, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it hoped India would abide by treaties reached between the two sides on border issues.

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"China and India are now in negotiation and consultation for proper settlement of the boundary issue, seeking a fair and reasonable solution acceptable to both sides. Before that is achieved, we hope India will conform to the treaties and agreements reached between the two sides, respect and abide by the Line of Actual Control, stop meaningless playing up and work with China to uphold peace and stability in the border areas," Geng Shuang, China's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday.

On Sunday, news agency PTI reported that the Chinese military had protested against the Indian army's "transgression" into the Asaphila area along the disputed border in Arunachal Pradesh, a charge that was roundly rejected by the Indian side.

However, the Chinese foreign ministry has once again reiterated that it does not recognize Arunachal Pradesh. China considers Arunachal Pradesh to be part of South Tibet.

"I'm not aware of the details of what happened along the China-India border recently as you mentioned. China's position on the China-India boundary issue remains consistent and clear-cut. The Chinese government has never recognized the so-called 'Arunachal Pradesh'," Geng Shuang added.

On April 6, China's Vice Foreign Minister Kong Xuanyou held consultations with Indian Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale in New Delhi. The two sides had also held a joint-secretary-level meeting on boundary issues and discussed confidence-building measures.

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Meanwhile, India's Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj is expected to visit China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization foreign ministers meet on April 24, while Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will also visit China for the bilateral meet as well as an SCO defense minister meet. These meetings are the precursor to the meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the SCO Summit in June this year.