China renames 11 places in India’s Arunachal Pradesh state, calls it ‘Southern Tibet’; New Delhi reacts

In an effort to lay claim over Arunachal Pradesh, Beijing has renamed 11 places in the northeast Indian state that it says are part of South Tibet. The move drew sharp reaction from India.

China's Ministry of Civil Affairs on Sunday released a third set of names for 11 places in the state, which it refers to as “Zangnan, the southern part of Tibet”, state-run Global Times reported on Monday.

The first batch of six places was announced in 2017 and the second batch of 15 places in 2021.

The names are standardised in Chinese, Tibetan, and Pinyin characters, which follows the regulations on geographical names issued by the State Council, China's cabinet.

The list includes precise coordinates for two land areas, two residential areas, five mountain peaks, and two rivers, along with their subordinate administrative districts, the news outlet reported.

These are the 11 places that have been renamed

Beijing has also released a map showing parts of Arunachal Pradesh inside the southern Tibetan region, including a town situated close to the state capital of Itanagar.

The Global Times quoted Chinese experts as saying that the announcement of names is a legitimate move and China's sovereign right to standardise geographical names.

The move drew strong reactions from New Delhi, which has asserted that Arunachal Pradesh has "always been" and will "always be" an integral part of India and that assigning "invented" names does not alter this fact.

"We have seen such reports. This is not the first time China has made such an attempt. we reject this outright. Arunachal Pradesh is an integral, inalienable part of India. Attempts to assign invented names will not alter this reality," India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a statement.

Renaming ahead of defence minister’s visit

The latest move at renaming places comes days ahead of the scheduled visit of China’s newly appointed Defence Minister General Li Shangfu to India.

He is expected to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ meetings this month. China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang will also be attending the meeting of SCO foreign ministers in May. India currently holds the presidency of the group.

Also, Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit India for the SCO summit in July.

(With inputs from agencies)

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