NEW DELHI – Frustrated over back to back diplomatic setbacks over the issueof Occupied Kashmir, India lashes out at Pakistan and China over ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor passing through Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The latest diplomatic frustration comes after Pakistan and China jointstatement against India over Occupied Kashmir crisis.
India has taken exception to the mention of Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK)in a joint statement issued recently by Pakistan and China, according to areport published in *The Hindulink.*
Released on Sunday after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister WangYi’s September 7-8 visit to Islamabad, the joint statement conveyedBeijing’s opposition to “unilateral actions that complicate the situation”in the disputed Kashmir region.
On Tuesday, India’s Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumarsaid New Delhi rejects the reference to IOK and continues to opposeChina-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) activities in Azad Jammu andKashmir (AJK).
“We reject the reference to Jammu and Kashmir in the joint statement issuedby China and Pakistan after the recent visit of Chinese ForeignMinister. J&K is an integral part of India,” he said.
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He said New Delhi has “consistently expressed concerns to both China andPakistan” on CPEC projects in AJK, which he claimed were on “territory ofIndia that has been illegally occupied by Pakistan since 1947”.
Kumar added that India is “resolutely opposed to any actions by othercountries to change the status quo” in AJK. “We call on the partiesconcerned to cease such actions,” said the spokesperson.
In the Pak-China joint statement Beijing had also reaffirmed its supportto Islamabad in “safeguarding its sovereignty, territorial integrity,independence and national dignity”.
