China on Wednesday said that India’s stand on the One Belt One Road initiative seemed to be wavering, and added that the project, a part of which goes through parts of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, would not change Beijing’s “neutral stance” on the matter, IANS reported.
The statement comes a day after Russian Ambassador to India Nikolay Kudashev urged India and China to settle their differences over the project.
“You and your colleagues asked this question before and it shows that India is quite wavering on this issue of the Belt and Road initiative,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said when he was asked to comment on the envoy’s statement. “Since the Belt and Road initiative was proposed by President Xi Jinping, progress has been made smoothly with strong outcomes.”
“We believe that the Belt and Road initiative will create more room for China’s opening up and development,” Hua said, adding that it also presents more opportunities for economic development. “And it does not involve territorial disputes.”
India has reiterated on several occasions that the project did not respect its territorial integrity.
Hua added that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which is a part of the Belt and Road initiative and travels through the parts of Kashmir that are occupied by Pakistan, will not change Beijing’s stand that the Kashmir conflict must be solved only between New Delhi and Islamabad through talks.
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