'China has never recognised...': Beijing reacts after India rejects naming of places in Arunachal

China on Tuesday defended its decision to rename places in what it calls the “Zangnan” region, repeating its claim over Arunachal Pradesh and saying the move is within its rights.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said, “Zangnan is China's territory, and China has never recognized the so-called ‘Arunachal Pradesh’ illegally set up by India. It is entirely within China's sovereignty to standardize the names of some places in Zangnan region.”

His remarks came after China released the sixth batch of standardised names in the region on April 10, which triggered a strong response from India.

China, however, said overall ties between the two countries remain stable. “At present, China-India relations are generally stable. China's policy committed to improving and develop China-India relations remains unchanged,” Guo said.

He added, “We hope the two sides will meet each other halfway and do more things that are conducive to bilateral relations.”

China has been releasing such lists for years. The first list, covering six places, came out in 2017. This was followed by a list of 15 places in 2021 and another list of 11 places in 2023. In its latest move, China has again renamed several locations in the region it refers to as “Zangnan”.

China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet, a claim that India has consistently rejected.

Relations between the two countries have been tense since the 2020 eastern Ladakh border row. In the past one-and-a-half years, both sides have taken steps to improve and stabilise ties.

India rejects ‘fictitious names’, says reality cannot be changed

India on Sunday strongly objected to China’s move, calling it an attempt to create “baseless narratives” and warning that it could affect efforts to improve relations.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “India categorically rejects any mischievous attempts by the Chinese side to assign fictitious names to places which form part of the territory of India.”

He added, “Such attempts by China at introducing false claims and manufacturing baseless narratives cannot alter the undeniable reality that these places and territories, including Arunachal Pradesh, were, are, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India.”

Jaiswal also said, “These actions by the Chinese side detract from ongoing efforts to stabilise and normalise India-China bilateral ties.”

Calling for restraint, he added, “China should refrain from actions which inject negativity into relations and undermine efforts to create a better understanding.”