The Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday that India has lodged a strong protest with China for carrying out construction activities in the Shaksgam valley, in an "illegal" attempt to alter the situation on the ground.
In a weekly briefing on Thursday, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the Shaksgam valley is a part of India and New Delhi never accepted the so-called China-Pakistan boundary pact of 1963, through which Islamabad "unlawfully" attempted to cede the area to Beijing.
On Chinese activities near Siachen, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, "We consider Shaksgam Valley to be our territory. We have never accepted the so-called China-Pakistan boundary agreement of 1963 through which Pakistan unlawfully attempted to cede the area to China. I have consistently conveyed our rejection of the same. We have registered our protest with the Chinese side against illegal attempts to alter the facts on the ground. We further reserve the right to take necessary measures to safeguard our interests."
The Shaksgam valley is a strategically key region that is part of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Meanwhile, during the briefing, the MEA also said that the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is a biased organisation with a political agenda and added that the body continues to publish its propaganda as part of its annual report. Jaiswal called the organisation biased and driven by political motives. The MEA's reaction came after the USCIRF, in a recent report, criticised India for purported violations of religious freedom in addition to a few other issues.