NEW DELHI: India has lodged a strong protest with China over a map showing Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin as Chinese territory.
"We have today lodged a strong protest through diplomatic channels with the Chinese side on the so-called 2023 standard map of China that lays claim to India’s territory," said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
India further said that it rejected such claims as they had no basis.
"Such steps by the Chinese side only complicate the resolution of the boundary question," Bagchi added.
China had unveiled an updated standard map on Monday that incorporated territories including Aksai Chin, Arunachal Pradesh and even Taiwan and disputed areas of the South China Sea as its own.
"It's an old habit of theirs. These (territories) are very much part of India. This government is very clear what our territories are. Making absurd claims doesn't make others' territories yours," said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Delhi on Tuesday.
The map's release comes a few days after PM Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping during the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg. Though the two leaders met and exchanged courtesies, they also spoke about a resolution of the pending border issue.
India has always reaffirmed that Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain its integral and inalienable part.
In April this year, China had renamed 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh, referring them as Zangnan, the southern part of Tibet.
Meanwhile, with just 10 days left for the G20 Summit in Delhi, this map comes as an irritant. India is still awaiting confirmation on Chinese President Xi Jinping's in-person participation in the Summit.