{"id":35050,"date":"2023-12-13T17:17:57","date_gmt":"2023-12-13T17:17:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/china-doubles-down-on-its-claim-over-parts-of-ladakh-in-iiojk-the-express-tribune\/"},"modified":"2023-12-13T17:17:57","modified_gmt":"2023-12-13T17:17:57","slug":"china-doubles-down-on-its-claim-over-parts-of-ladakh-in-iiojk-the-express-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/china-doubles-down-on-its-claim-over-parts-of-ladakh-in-iiojk-the-express-tribune\/","title":{"rendered":"China doubles down on its claim over parts of Ladakh in IIOJK | The Express Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nANKARA:
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China Wednesday doubled down on its claim over parts of Ladakh in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) region.<\/p>\n

\u201cChina has never recognised the so-called union territory of Ladakh set up unilaterally and illegally by India,\u201d Mao Ning, spokeswoman of China\u2019s Foreign Ministry, said in a news briefing.<\/p>\n

On Aug. 5, 2019, New Delhi revoked the special status granted to the region under Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian constitution and downgraded the erstwhile state into two federally-administered Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh.<\/p>\n

India\u2019s Supreme Court on Monday upheld these decisions taken by New Delhi and asked the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold elections in Kashmir by September next year.<\/p>\n

Read also:\u00a0China calls for \u2018peaceful settlement\u2019 of IIOJK issue<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Responding to the verdict, Mao said: \u201cIndia\u2019s domestic judicial verdict does not change the fact that the western section of the China-India border has always belonged to China,\u201d according to a transcript of the news briefing held in Beijing.<\/p>\n

Beijing had objected to the changes to IIOJK as China has border claims in Ladakh along what is called as Line of Actual Control.<\/p>\n

India rejects such claims.<\/p>\n

At least 24 soldiers, 20 from the Indian side, were killed when the two militaries fought, without firearms, at the Line of Actual Control in June 2020.<\/p>\n

The border crisis has not yet been resolved although tensions appear to have eased.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n