Qureshi accuses India of triggering Ladakh border standoff

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Wednesday pointed to New Delhi’s “illegal constructions” in the disputed Ladakh region as the reason behind the recent standoff between the Chinese and Indian armies.

According to Radio Pakistan, Qureshi said that while China wished to resolve issues through dialogue, it “cannot remain oblivious to India’s illegal constructions” as he urged the world community to take notice of New Delhi’s hostile policies.

The foreign minister, in a conversation with state-owned broadcaster Pakistan Television (PTV), expressed concern over the construction of roads and airstrips by India in Ladakh, which is a disputed territory, adding that New Delhi’s “aggressive policy against its neighbours is putting regional peace and stability at stake”.

Qureshi pointed out that New Delhi had stripped occupied Jammu and Kashmir of its special status in August last year, saying that the move showed India’s intention of “changing the demographic composition of the territory”.

He also said India had “used the land of Afghanistan against Pakistan”, echoing the concerns voiced by independent observers that Afghan soil is being used to execute terror attack against Pakistan.

In a separate statement, the foreign minister questioned: “The world should take notice of India’s motives, where is it headed?”

“Sometimes India has problems with Nepal, at other times, it [New Delhi] tries to disrupt the Afghan peace process,” he said. 

“India tries to promote unrest in Balochistan and now it has done the same in Ladakh and is trying to blame China for it.”

In a series of tweets, Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned India’s “arrogant expansionist policies”, saying that they were “becoming a threat to India’s neighbours”.

The premier likened the recent developments undertaken by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government including the introduction of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2020, and the border disputes with Nepal and China to Lebensraum (literally: living space), a practice of settler colonialism which proliferated in Nazi Germany.

SINO-INDIAN STANDOFF INTENSIFIES:

The standoff between India and China at the disputed eastern Laddakh border area intensified a few days ago with Indian media reports claiming both sides have increased their troops in the area.

As per a report by The Print, Beijing has also beefed up security on its side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) by locating an estimated 1,200 to 1,300 troops near the Pangong Lake.

The report, citing sources, said that Chinese soldiers moved into the “finger areas” of Pangong Lake whilst it bolstered its troop strength at the LAC. “The Pangong Lake’s northern bank juts forward like a palm, and the various protrusions are identified as “fingers” to demarcate territory.”

Sources had further said that while the Chinese soldiers maintained that they remained within their borders, they did, however, believe that 3 km within India’s perception of the LAC was crossed.