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| China's official national map (Click to Enlarge) |
By Ankit Panda
China’s new official map continues to press Beijing’s claim to Arunachal Pradesh.
Last week, China unveiled an update of its official national map. Most of the media attention was devoted to the emphasis on China’s South China Sea claims on these maps. Indeed, the new maps do emphasize China’s controversial “nine-dash line” claim to the South China Sea, making the islands and territories within that region appear more integral to China territorial integrity than previous maps. This same map additionally irk India as they continue to show the disputed territory of Arunachal Pradesh — administered by India in its entirety and inhabited by Indian citizens — as Chinese territory.
The Indian Foreign Ministry issued a statement regarding the new maps, noting that ”cartographic depictions do not change the reality on the ground.” The timing of the controversy over the new map came as Indian Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari was in Beijing for the celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.” The principles were developed by India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and China’s first Premier Zhou Enlai in the 1950s. During his visit to China, Ansari met with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to raise “all issues of concern” in India-China relations, including the issue of Chinese firms planning a railway linking China and Pakistan through territory disputed by India and Pakistan in Kashmir.
Read the full story at The Diplomat