NEW DELHI: India considers the 1963 agreement between Pakistan and China on Shaksgam Valley as "illegal", Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi said on Tuesday.
Gen Dwivedi's comments at a press conference came four days after the external affairs ministry criticised China's infrastructure development projects in Shaksgam Valley and said that India reserves the right to take necessary measures to safeguard its interests as it is an Indian territory.
Pakistan illegally ceded 5,180 sq kms of Indian territory in Shaksgam Valley to China in 1963 from areas illegally occupied by it.
"As far as the Shaksgam Valley is concerned, India considers the 1963 agreement between Pakistan and China as illegal," the Army chief said.
"We don't approve of any activity in the valley. The Ministry of External Affairs has already stated this clearly. Therefore, the joint statement which has been issued in China, what I understand about the CPEC 2.0, we do not accept it, and we consider it an illegal action being carried out by the two nations," he said.
India has been severely critical of the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that passes through Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
China on Monday reaffirmed its territorial claims over the Shaksgam Valley following India's comments last week.
Beijing stressed that the Chinese infrastructure projects in the area are "beyond reproach".
The external affairs ministry on Friday said: "We have consistently protested with the Chinese side against attempts to alter the ground reality in Shaksgam Valley. We further reserve the right to take necessary measures to safeguard our interests."
On the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, Gen Dwivedi said it "remains stable but needs constant vigil."
"Apex-level interactions, renewed contact and confidence-building measures are contributing to gradual normalisation of the situation. This has also enabled grazing, hydrotherapy camps and other activities along the northern borders," he said.
"With our continued strategic orientation on this front, our deployment along the LAC remains balanced and robust. Concurrently, capability development and infrastructure enhancement are progressing through a whole-of-government approach," he said.