(TibetanReview.net, Mar27’23) – China has skipped a G20 meeting hosted by India in its border state of Arunachal Pradesh on Mar 26, raising speculations that it was to protest against the venue being in a territory claimed by it on the basis of its questionable claim over Tibet.
The meeting, held in the state’s capital Itanagar, otherwise saw a good turnout as more than 50 delegates, including from the US, participated in the G20 Research Innovation Initiative Gathering, reported the timesofindia.com Mar 27, citing official sources.
The report noted that China doesn’t recognise India’s sovereignty over Arunachal and claims the state, saying it’s a part of south Tibet. However, it is not known yet if China has officially lodged a protest with India against the meeting, the report added.
Neither Foreign ministry nor China has commented on it, reported the ndtv.com Mar 27.
Beijing has so far been seen as supportive of India’s G20 presidency and Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang visited India earlier this month for the foreign ministers’ meeting.
India was stated to have made it clear since before it assumed the presidency last year that it will take G20 to all corners of the country, with its ambassador to UN Ruchira Kamboj recently saying that meetings will take place in all 28 states and 8 Union Territories of India.
India is also to host a G20 meeting on culture in Jammu and Kashmir in May. Pakistan has been lobbying China, as well as Turkiye and Saudi Arabia – all G20 member-states – to stop India from hosting the proposed meeting in Srinagar, the report noted. Islamabad disputes India’s sovereignty over the Union Territory and China has generally supported its position.
India is to host dozens of events planned across 50 major cities ahead of the G20 summit in Delhi in September.
India and Chinese troops had clashed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the state’s Tawang sector last December, in a face-off that came amid a months-long border standoff in eastern Ladakh.