India rejects China’s claim on Ladakh

India on Tuesday reiterated that Ladakh is an integral part of the country, rejecting China’s objection to New Delhi’s move to standardise the names of 28 geographical features in the Union Territory.

“UT of Ladakh is an integral and inalienable part of India. No amount of denial by the Chinese side can change this established fact,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

Responding to media queries on China’s objections, Jaiswal said the Union home ministry’s announcement on naming the geographical features was “self-explanatory”.

The home ministry announced on October 2 that 28 geographical features in Ladakh had been assigned standardised names for inclusion on the official Survey of India map, in consultation with the Union Territory administration and local stakeholders. The exercise aims to facilitate accurate identification of the locations and improve public awareness, Jaiswal said.

China on Tuesday said it did not recognise what it called the “so-called” Union Territory of Ladakh and described India’s move as “illegal and invalid”.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said the announcement could not alter what Beijing considers the status of the western section of the China-India border. China claims territory in the region, while India maintains that Ladakh is an integral part of its territory.

The 28 geographical features identified by India include 10 peaks, two passes, three mountains, seven land areas, two glaciers, two water bodies, a valley and a river.

The move comes amid continuing disagreements between the two countries over geographical names along their disputed border. China has previously announced standardised names for locations in Arunachal Pradesh, which it calls “south Tibet”. India has rejected Beijing’s claims over the state, maintaining that assigning names to geographical features does not alter territorial realities.