Such actions under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor are “inherently unlawful,” according to Arindam Bagchi, a spokeswoman for the foreign ministry, and India would handle them as such.
On Tuesday, India criticized China and Pakistan for attempting to persuade other parties to join their multibillion-dollar connectivity corridor project, which crosses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
India would see such actions under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as “inherently unlawful, illegitimate, and undesirable,” according to External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
Projects in the so-called CPEC on India’s territory that Pakistan has illegally seized have regularly drawn criticism from New Delhi. Friday’s Joint Working Group (JWG) on International Cooperation and Coordination meeting of the centerpiece CPEC project saw Pakistan and China decide to invite interested third nations to participate.
“There have been reports about increasing third-country participation in so-called CPEC projects. Any such activities by any entity directly violate India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, “said Mr. Bagchi.
He declared, “India strongly and repeatedly opposes projects in the so-called CPEC, which are in Indian land Pakistan has unlawfully taken.”
He said, “Such operations are essentially unlawful, unjustified, and undesirable, and would be addressed as such by India.”
The CPEC was started in 2013 to connect China’s Xinjiang province with Pakistan’s Gwadar deep-sea port and to upgrade Pakistan’s road, rail, and energy transportation infrastructure.
Part of China’s grandiose Belt and Road Initiative is the CPEC (BRI).
