Beijing gives fresh shock to India after reasserting authority over Arunachal Pradesh

In a further regional setback for India, China renamed at least 27 locations in Arunachal Pradesh and reasserted its authority over the region it refers to as “Zangnan.”

The ministry added that assigning Chinese names to the areas falls under Beijing’s internal administrative affairs and is meant to reinforce the historical and cultural identity of the region.

“The Chinese government has standardised the names of some places in Zangnan, which is entirely within the scope of China’s sovereignty,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. 

China regards the region as part of southern Tibet. India, however, contests this claim.

Tensions between the two Asian giants over the territory are longstanding and have flared repeatedly over the decades. In March 2024, China issued what it called the fourth batch of standardized geographical names for places in Zangnan, as part of its broader policy of asserting sovereignty over disputed border areas.

Responding to China’s move, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said, "Creative naming will not alter the undeniable reality that Arunachal Pradesh was, is, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India.

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The Chinese stance remains unchanged since 1987, when India officially declared Arunachal Pradesh a state. At the time, Beijing condemned the decision, calling it an "illegal occupation" of Chinese territory.

The disputed border between India and China stretches roughly 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles), much of it undefined and heavily militarised.

Relations between the two countries became strained, particularly following a deadly clash in June 2020 between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley, located in the Ladakh region. 

That confrontation, which led to the deaths of at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers, was described as the most serious border violence between the two nations since 1975.

The incident reportedly erupted over the construction of observation posts and tents on territory India claimed as its own. Indian troops demolished the structures, leading to a bloody hand-to-hand confrontation in the high-altitude region near the Line of Actual Control.