Occupied Kashmir conflict: China more dangerous than Pakistan on diplomatic warfare front, claims Indian media
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NEW DELHI - China launched an attack on India at the height of Hindi-Chini bhai-bhai sentiment espoused by then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and occupied Aksai Chin in Jammu and Kashmir. In the globalised set up, for years it blocked tagging Masood Azhar a global terrorist when the rest of the world agreed with Indian viewpoint.
While Pakistan has been visibly aggressive and desperate in attempting to swing international opinion on Kashmir, especially after the scrapping of special status of Jammu and Kashmir by the Narendra Modi government, China has been more subtle and nuanced, India today has reported.
China knows that it is the best bet for Pakistan if the Imran Khan government has any chance of getting international attention over Kashmir. The other hope for Imran Khan is US President Donald Trump, whose utterances on Kashmir and mediation offers have been firmly refuted by his own administration.
This makes China a serious player in diplomatic warfare between India and Pakistan over the status of Jammu and Kashmir. China is present in Jammu and Kashmir in two main pockets -- both illegally acquired.
*China in Kashmir*
China occupies about 38,000 sq km of Aksai Chin, which it claims to be a part of the Hotan County, lying in the southwestern part of Xinjiang Autonomous Region. China has rejected the Simla Accord of 1914 signed between representatives of China, Tibet and British India.
According to this accord, Ladakh is part of Jammu and Kashmir. China does not recognise this agreement saying that it was signed by a government that did not represent the people of China. The current communist regime of China came to power in the country in 1949.
China continues to recognise Ladakh as "disputed" territory where Indo-China boundary is yet to be demarcated. This stand has helped China justify its occupation of Aksai Chin.
Besides, China has got an area of over 5,800 sq km in Shaksgam Valley of Pakistan Kashmir and renamed it as Trans-Karakoram Tract. It was originally part of Hunza-Gilgit region of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. In return, China has stood by Pakistan in all its dirty games against India.
The Pakistan-China boundary agreement of 1963, under which Pakistan gifted a part of Jammu and Kashmir's land, calls for re-settlement of boundary limits in the region once the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan is resolved. This clause has a hidden message for China that it may get more land in strategically significant region.
*How China reacted post-August 5*
On August 5, the Narendra Modi government ceased the operation of Article 370 giving special status to Jammu and Kashmir and also bifurcated the state into two Union Territories. Ladakh will be carved out as a Union Territory without a legislature.
China responded to the move angrily saying India has violated sovereignty concerns of China. The obvious reference was to its claim over Ladakh.
"Recently India has continued to hurt Chinese sovereignty by unilaterally changing domestic lawThis act is not acceptable and won't be in any sense binding," the Chinese foreign ministry said on August 6. Here, the choice of words by the Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying was curious.
She categorically termed the Article 370 move by the Modi government a matter relating to "domestic law" of India but asserted it is not "binding" on China with regard to Aksai Chin, which was referred to by Union Home Minister Amit Shah when he moved the motion to make changes in the status of Jammu and Kashmir.
Ten days later, China extended unhindered support to Pakistan over its Kashmir policy. "China will continue to firmly support Pakistan in safeguarding its legitimate rights and interests and continue to preside over justice for Pakistan on the international stage," China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said after hosting his counterpart from Pakistan.
This commitment came just ahead of Wang's meeting with Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, who visited Beijing as part of India's diplomatic outreach to international community in the aftermath of Kashmir move.
China then pressed for a closed-door deliberation of the United Nations Security Council over the Kashmir.
