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New Delhi: The latest India-Pakistan-China diplomatic friction is not only about a new border mechanism but also about a decades-old territorial dispute involving Jammu and Kashmir. India has rejected the Pakistan-China Boundary Joint Commission, saying such an arrangement cannot have any legal impact on Indian territory.
The Ministry of External Affairs has reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh remain integral parts of India and that any discussion involving these regions without India’s participation is unacceptable.
The issue surfaced after Pakistan and China moved forward with a joint boundary mechanism aimed at improving coordination on border-related matters.
However, New Delhi objected to the initiative, arguing that Pakistan and China cannot make decisions concerning areas that India claims as its own.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India does not recognise the mechanism and maintained that such steps cannot alter India’s position on territorial sovereignty.
The latest controversy has brought attention back to the 1963 China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement.
Under that agreement, Pakistan handed over control of the Shaksgam Valley region to China. India has consistently rejected the arrangement, stating that Pakistan had no authority to deal with territory claimed by India.
The Shaksgam Valley issue has remained one of the key points of disagreement between New Delhi and Beijing.
India has previously raised objections to Chinese projects and agreements involving Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, including infrastructure initiatives linked to the region.
New Delhi’s position has been that any activity in territories claimed by India cannot change the legal status of those areas.
The latest development comes at a time when India continues to closely monitor China-Pakistan cooperation on strategic and security issues.
While Pakistan and China have presented the boundary mechanism as a bilateral arrangement, India has maintained that territorial matters involving Indian claims cannot be addressed without considering its position.
The dispute highlights the continuing complexity of border issues involving the three neighbouring countries.
