China has expressed diplomatic displeasure towards India following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to Arunachal Pradesh, where he inaugurated the strategically significant Sela tunnel. This diplomatic protest comes in the backdrop of China's claim over Arunachal Pradesh, which it refers to as South Tibet, with the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin asserting that India's actions would only serve to complicate the ongoing boundary dispute.
During a media briefing, Wang Wenbin reiterated China's longstanding stance of non-recognition towards what it terms the "so-called" Arunachal Pradesh, contending that India lacks the authority to unilaterally develop the region known as Zangnan in China, a term it uses to designate Arunachal Pradesh.
Highlighting the potential ramifications of India's initiatives in the region, the Chinese spokesperson underscored China's strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the visit by Indian leaders to the eastern section of the China-India boundary.
This latest development adds to a series of objections voiced by China in response to Indian dignitaries' visits to Arunachal Pradesh. Nonetheless, India has consistently asserted Arunachal Pradesh's integral status within its territorial framework, dismissing China's attempts to impose alternative designations as inconsequential to the ground reality.
On March 9, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the Sela tunnel, hailed as the world's longest bi-lane tunnel, connecting Tezpur in Assam to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. Constructed for Rs 825 crore and situated at an altitude of 13,000 feet, the tunnel holds strategic significance by providing all-weather connectivity to Tawang, facilitating enhanced mobility of troops and weaponry to frontier locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.
Moreover, the tunnel's completion is poised to substantially reduce travel time between Tezpur and Tawang by over an hour, thereby bolstering connectivity and accessibility to the region's remote areas, including those bordering China.
