NEW DELHI: On Tuesday, India categorically rejected China’s newly unveiled “standard map” for the year 2023, emphasizing that such actions by China only serve to complicate the ongoing resolution of boundary issues.
Arindam Bagchi, the spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, stated, “Today, we lodged a strong diplomatic protest with the Chinese authorities regarding the so-called 2023 ‘standard map,’ which illegitimately lays claim to regions of India’s territory.” Bagchi made this statement while addressing questions from the media about the contentious map.
Earlier on the same day, India’s Minister of External Affairs, S Jaishankar, openly criticized China’s official release of the “standard map” that inappropriately incorporates Indian territory. Jaishankar dismissed this move as a repetitive pattern and firmly stated that the inclusion of other nations’ territories on a map does not in any way alter the actual reality on the ground.
On August 28, China officially unveiled the 2023 edition of its “standard map,” controversially designating Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin as part of its own territory. Of significance, the map also asserts Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan and the disputed South China Sea region.
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