- Friday, April 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
China on Sunday (26) did not take part in a confidential G20 meeting which was held in Itanagar, the capital of the north-eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claims to be its own part “since ancient times”, NDTV reported citing sources.
New Delhi has refuted the claim in the past and maintains Arunachal to be its integral part.
More than 50 delegates took part in the meeting, which is among the dozens of events that have been planned across 50 major cities ahead of the G20 summit in Delhi in September.
India is currently holding the presidency of the bloc which it took over Indonesia on December 1 last year.
It was, however, not clear whether China has officially lodged a protest with India over the meeting in Arunachal Pradesh, the NDTV report said, adding that no remark was issued from the Chinese side.
The meeting was declared confidential with no media coverage permitted.
The event was organised by the science and technology department and themed ‘Research and Innovation Initiative Gathering’.
The participating delegates also paid a visit to the legislative assembly of the state and a Buddhist monastery located in Itanagar. They were received at the airport by cultural troupes and enjoyed local cuisines, official sources said.
Troops from India and China had clashed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Aruanchal’s Tawang sector last December and it happened amid a months-long border standoff between the two neighbours in eastern Ladakh.
Indian defence minister Rajnath Singh had accused Beijing of trying to change the status quo along the LAC “unilaterally”.
Earlier in March, Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang visited India to take part in the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi.
