China objects to Indian tunnel opening
China criticized the inauguration of a tunnel that will give Indian troops easy access to areas close to the disputed border between the two countries.
Beijing lodged a diplomatic protest with New Delhi over the development in Arunachal Pradesh, an area China calls Zangnan and claims as its own.
“The Chinese government has never recognized the so-called Arunachal Pradesh locally set up by India, and we firmly oppose this,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters on Monday in a regular briefing.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the Sela tunnel during a video ceremony in Itanagar on Saturday, dedicating it to the development of the Northeastern states.
The tunnel, built under the Sela pass at about 13,700 feet, is expected to aid movement of troops to locations along the Line of Actual Control.
“The China-India boundary question has yet to be solved. India has no right to arbitrarily develop the area of Zangnan in China,” Wang said.
“India’s relevant moves will only complicate the boundary question. China is strongly dissatisfied with this and firmly opposed to the leader’s visit to the eastern section of the China-India boundary,” the ministry’s spokesman added.
Modi said on the weekend that the tunnel “provides allweather connectivity to our people in Tawang, making transportation easier for the locals and boosting tourism in Arunachal.”
Meanwhile, a second Chinese research vessel in two months has been spotted near India’s coast, adding to New Delhi’s anxiety over possible military intelligence-gathering in its backyard, adds.
The Xiang Yang Hong 01 was seen off India’s eastern coast over the weekend, according to an Indian security official, a geo-intelligence researcher and ship tracking information.