India Says "Shaksgam Valley Ours" On China Construction Activity Reports

The Shaksgam Valley is a part of the territory of India, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said today amid reports of China building infrastructure in the valley, a strategically located region that is now part of the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India "never accepted the so-called China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement of 1963 through which Pakistan unlawfully attempted to cede the area to China".

Lodging a strong protest with China for carrying out construction activities, India called it an "illegal" attempt to alter the situation on the ground.

"We have registered our protest with the Chinese side against illegal attempts to alter facts on the ground," said Mr Jaiswal, adding the country reserves "the right to take necessary measures to safeguard our interests".

The reports of Chinese construction activities come amid a row between India and China in eastern Ladakh.

Speaking about the Ladakh border row, the MEA spokesperson said the next round of talks will be held very soon to "take things forward".

"We have ongoing talks between India and China at diplomatic and military levels. These issues are serious and therefore they take time. We will have the next round of engagement very soon to take things forward," he said.

The last round of military talks between the two sides had taken place in February. In the talks, both sides agreed to maintain "peace and tranquillity" on the ground but there was no indication of any breakthrough.

The Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a standoff in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.