China on Tuesday appeared to deny Indian Ministry of External Affairs’ spokesperson Gopal Baglay’s comments that the country had not held any “meaningful dialogue” with New Delhi on the One Belt, One Road project. Baglay’s Chinese counterpart, Hua Chunying, on Tuesday said India must specify exactly what it meant by “meaningful dialogue” as it had held extensive talks for years with participating countries, PTI reported.
“Over the past four years, since the project was initiated, we have been holding the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits for the Belt and Road initiative,” Hua said. “I do not know what the spokesperson [of the MEA] was trying to say. What kind of dialogue is a meaningful dialogue? What kind of a positive attitude does the spokesman want China to have?”
A day earlier, China had said the project, which includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, would not affect its stand on the Kashmir dispute. The CPEC, which passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, is one of the reasons India stayed away from the Belt Road Forum, a two-day conference on the project that saw many heads of state and top bureaucrats camping in Beijing.
India had made its stand clear by choosing not to send a representative to the forum, which was held on May 14 and 15. It has repeatedly said the project did not respect countries’ territorial integrity. “Connectivity projects must be pursued in a manner that respects sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Baglay had said last Saturday.
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