"We Share Border With Tibet...": Arunachal Chief Minister Takes Down China

China got played at its own game Wednesday after Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu declared the northeastern state does not share land borders with Tibet and not that country.

In an interview with news agency PTI it was suggested that Arunachal Pradesh shares a 1,200-km border with China. Mr Khandu's 'precision strike' response was quick and sharp.

"Let me correct you here. We share a border with Tibet and not China," he said.

The Chief Minister said firmly that no Indian state shares a land border with China. They do, however, with Tibet, he said, which had been forcibly occupied by China in the 1950s.

"Officially, yes, Tibet is under China now. That can't be ruled out... but originally we shared a border with Tibet. And in Arunachal Pradesh we share only three international boundaries."

"... with Bhutan, approximately 150km; with Myanmar on the eastern side, around 550km, and with Tibet, which is one of the longest in the country," the Chief Minister said.

Mr Khandu's sharp reply comes amid repeated efforts by China to grab Indian territory - including areas in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand - by claiming the entire state of Arunachal Pradesh.

READ | Arunachal Town Sees Big Protests After China's 'Renaming' Bid

China calls the state 'Zangnan' or 'Southern Tibet'.

To that end Beijing has often renamed areas in the state it considers its territory - an illegal act India has strongly condemned several times - and released maps showing the state within its borders.

The most recent attempt was in May, after which India slammed the "preposterous" re-naming exercise and the External Affairs Ministry said, "Creative naming won't alter the undeniable reality... Arunachal Pradesh was, is, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India."

READ | India Reminds China Of "Undeniable Reality" Of Arunachal Pradesh

Before that, in 2024, 30 places in Arunachal Pradesh were given Chinese names.

That was the fourth time in the preceding seven years Beijing tried to illegally claim the state, including the release of a 'standard map' in 2023 that claimed both Arunachal and Ladakh's Aksai Chin region.

On that occasion the 'map' was released days before India hosted the G20 Summit and after an 'informal' meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China's Xi Jinping in South Africa.

READ | "Absurd Claims Don't Make..." S Jaishankar To NDTV On China's New Map

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had summarily dismissed the new "map", telling NDTV in an exclusive interview Beijing has a "habit" of releasing such maps. "Just by putting out maps... doesn't change in anything. Making absurd claims does not make other people's territories yours," he said.

On this topic the Chief Minister said, "We know China's habit, and I think the External Affairs Ministry has dealt with it and has given them (i.e., the Chinese government) a fitting reply."

With input from agencies

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