A proposed bus service — connecting Lahore in Pakistan with Kashgar, a city in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west — through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) has sparked off a tri-country row involving India, China and Pakistan. Even as Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang on Thursday defended the bus service and said it has nothing to do with the territorial dispute and will not change its "principled stance" on the Kashmir issue, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) lodged strong protests with both China and Pakistan. The bus service is being launched on Saturday.
MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said the bus service was to operate through areas of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir state under the so-called 'China-Pakistan Economic Corridor'. India considers Gilgit or Northern Areas as its legitimate and integral part. "It is Government of India's consistent and well-known position that the so-called China-Pakistan 'Boundary Agreement' of 1963 is illegal and invalid, and has never been recognised by the Government of India. Therefore, any such bus service through Pakistan Occupied Jammu & Kashmir State will be a violation of India's sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said.
Pakistan, however, rejected the protest, citing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions. A statement issued by Pakistan Foreign Office accused India of raising frivolous issues.
Earlier, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu said he was not aware of India's diplomatic protest. "But on the issue of Kashmir, China's position is clear-cut. We made it clear many times," he said. China's stand, he said, is that the "cooperation between China and Pakistan has nothing to do with the territorial dispute and will not affect China's principled position on Kashmir," he said. China maintains that the Kashmir issue should be resolved bilaterally between India and Pakistan through dialogue and consultation.
The bus will travel through PoK's Gilgit-Baltistan region, which is part of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan and China don't share a border and its only link to China is through PoK, which shares border with China as well as with Afghanistan. The 30-hour trip will take passengers Chilas, Gilgit, Sost, Khunjerab Pass. The passengers have been asked to book their seats at least a week before travel while the one-way ticket from Lahore to Kaghar have been priced at Pakistani Rs 13,000 per seat.
HAMARA POK
- India always stated that the so-called China-Pak boundary pact of 1963 is illegal and invalid.
- Hence, any bus service via PoK will be a violation of India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
- India considers Gilgit or Northern Areas as its legitimate, integral part.
