China’s new Land Boundary Law can have implications: MEA

New Delhi, Oct 27: The Ministry of External Affairs said that China's new legislation called the Land Boundary Law can have an implication on the existing bilateral agreements on border management.

"Such unilateral move will have no bearing on the arrangements that both sides have already reached earlier, whether it is on the boundary question or for maintaining peace and tranquillity along LAC in India-China border areas," a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs read.

"The passage of this new law does not in our view confer any legitimacy to the so-called China-Pakistan "Boundary Agreement" of 1963 which the Government of India has consistently maintained is an illegal and invalid agreement," MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in the statement.

China's national legislature has adopted a new law on the protection and exploitation of the land border areas, which could have bearing on Beijing's border dispute with India, according to a PTI report.

Members of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) approved the law at the closing meeting of a legislative session on Saturday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The law, which becomes operational from January 1 next year, stipulates that "the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People's Republic of China are sacred and inviolable", it said. The state shall take measures to safeguard territorial integrity and land boundaries and guard against and combat any act that undermines territorial sovereignty and land boundaries, the report said.

The law also stipulates that the state shall take measures to strengthen border defence, support economic and social development as well as opening-up in border areas, improve public services and infrastructure in such areas, encourage and support people's life and work there, and promote coordination between border defence and social, economic development in border areas, it said.

The state shall, following the principle of equality, mutual trust and friendly consultation, handle land border-related affairs with neighbouring countries through negotiations to properly resolve disputes and longstanding border issues, it said.