India Rejects China’s Attempt to Rename Places in Arunachal Pradesh

On Tuesday, the Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, made a statement rejecting China’s recent attempt to rename places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. Bagchi emphasized that Arunachal Pradesh will always be an integral part of India, and any efforts by China to assign invented names to the region will not alter this reality.

This statement was in response to China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs’ announcement of 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh under the label “Zangnan, the southern part of Tibet.”

According to Global Times, China released the names of these 11 places on Sunday, including residential areas, mountain peaks, rivers, and other areas, providing precise coordinates and categorizing them by administrative districts. This marks the third batch of geographical names announced by China in Arunachal Pradesh, with the first batch of six places issued in 2017 and the second batch of 15 places in 2021.

The Indian government had already seen reports of China attempting to rename places in Arunachal Pradesh in December 2022, and in response to a media query, Bagchi stated that China had attempted such renaming in April 2017. Bagchi’s recent statement reiterated that Arunachal Pradesh has always been an integral part of India, and renaming places will not alter this fact.

China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs issued the names of the 11 places in accordance with its rules on geographical names, but India’s rejection of the renaming is based on its sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh. This issue reflects the ongoing border tensions between India and China, with both countries claiming territories in the region. Despite diplomatic efforts to resolve the matter, it remains a contentious issue, with China’s recent attempt to rename places in Arunachal Pradesh being the latest example.