In a move that could further sour New Delhi’s ties with Beijing, China will host the 3rd Trans-Himalaya Forum for International Cooperation in Nyingchi, Tibet, very close to the Sino-India border.
The development is contentious as Nyingchi, the venue for the event, is merely 160 km from India’s northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China has repeatedly claimed to be its own.
Overview
The event will be held in Tibet on 4-5 October.
The meeting will take place in Nyingchi in Tibet Autonomous Region, 400 km east of Lhasa, and north of, and very near to, Arunachal Pradesh’s Upper Siang district.
The Trans-Himalaya Forum began in 2018 with the intent to deepen practical cooperation among regional countries.
It covers diverse subjects, including geographical connectivity, environmental protection, ecological preservation, and enhancing cultural linkages.
#FPVideo: #China will host a Trans-Himalaya forum in #Tibet just 160 kilometres from the Indian state of #ArunachalPradesh. #Pakistan, #Afghanistan and #Mongolia have agreed to attend the summit. This comes amid ongoing India-China border tensions. pic.twitter.com/XPiuY2FA9s
— Firstpost (@firstpost) October 3, 2023
The last summit took place in 2019 before the COVID-19 outbreak.
The theme of this year’s forum is “Ecological Civilisation and Environmental Protection.”
Pakistan’s caretaker Foreign Minister (FM), Jalil Abbas Jilani, and Afghanistan’s Acting FM, Amir Khan Muttaqi, will attend the summit.
India’s Concerns
The development will surely raise brows in India, where Chinese moves near the border continue to draw suspicion.
Ties between the two Asian neighbours have been at a historic low ever since the skirmishes that took place between their respective troops in Galwan in May 2020.
The Sino-India border along Arunachal Pradesh has been a cause of friction as China claims Arunachal as its own, calling it “Zangnan” or “South Tibet.”
Recently, Indian Sports Minister Anurag Thakur cancelled his visit to the opening ceremony of the Asian Games in China. The move came after China denied visas and accreditation to three Indian Wushu competitors, Nyeman Wangsu, Onilu Tega and Mepung Lamgu, belonging to Arunachal Pradesh.
While there have been attempts to restore normalcy between the two nations, developments on the Chinese side repeatedly dent the process, and the standoff between the two sides continues.
In August, China released a “New Standard Map” claiming parts of Arunachal in its territory.
Beijing has objected to visits by Indian leaders to Arunachal and even released lists of standardised names for places in the state.
China had also protested India hosting G20 events in Arunachal.
On India’s part, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar has publicly acknowledged that ties between the two countries are strained.
Against this background, Beijing’s hosting of an international summit close to the Indian border would surely brew tensions in New Delhi.