China says Pakistan and India should jointly work towards regional peace and stability. AP

Beijing, September 26

For the second time in less than a week, China on Monday snubbed Pakistan by declining to back reports in Pakistani media claiming Beijing’s support for the country in the event of any aggression and backing it on the Kashmir issue.As a “neighbour and friend”, China once again appealed to India and Pakistan to engage in dialogue to “properly” resolve disputes, including the Kashmir issue which, it said, was “left over from history”, and jointly work towards regional peace and stability.

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Asked about the reported remarks by the Consul General in Lahore that China will support Pakistan against any foreign aggression and backs Islamabad on the Kashmir issue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang told a media briefing here that he was not aware of any such remarks made by the envoy.“I am not aware of the situation you mentioned. But China’s position on the relevant issue is consistent and clear,” he said.“As the neighbour and friend to both Pakistan and India, we hope the two countries will properly address their differences through dialogue and consultation, manage and control the situation and jointly work for the peace and stability of South Asia and the growth of the region.“With regard to the Kashmir issue, we believe it is an issue left over from history. We hope the relevant parties will peacefully and properly resolve the issue through dialogue and consultation,” he said.He was replying to a question about the remarks attributed to the envoy made during his meeting with Chief Minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province Shahbaz Sharif.“In case of any (foreign) aggression our country will extend its full support to Pakistan,” Consul General of China in Lahore Yu was quoted as saying in a press release by the Punjab Chief Minister’s Office, according to a report by Pakistani daily Dawn.“We are and will be siding with Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. There is no justification for atrocities on unarmed Kashmiris in (India)-held Kashmir and the Kashmir dispute should be solved in accordance with aspirations of the Kashmiris,” the report had quoted Yu as saying.China’s reaction on Monday is the second time since September 22 that it distanced itself from the Pakistani media attributing Beijing’s support to Pakistan on the Kashmir issue.China has declined to confirm Beijing’s backing to Islamabad on the issue during the meeting between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.The two leaders “exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as international and regional issues of common interest,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang had told PTI here when asked about reports that Li extended support to Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir.A report in Dawn said Li had assured Sharif that China would continue to support Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir. It had quoted Li telling Sharif that “we support Pakistan and we will speak for Pakistan at every forum”. PTI

China rejects comments of diplomat backing Pakistan

hina’s position on the issue is consistent and clear. As neighbour and friend to both Pakistan and India, we hope the two countries will properly address their differences through dialogue GENG SHUANG , MFA spokesperson

BEIJING: China denied on Monday any knowledge of a senior diplomat assuring Pakistan that Beijing will back the country in case of a war with India.

Last week, the consul general of China in Lahore, Yu Boren, was quoted as saying that China will extend support to Pakistan in case of “foreign aggression” and that his country was on Islamabad’s side in the Kashmir dispute. When asked about Yu’s categorical statement, the ministry of foreign affairs (MFA) brushed it aside. “I am not aware of the situation you mentioned,” MFA spokesperson Geng Shuang said at the regular presser on Monday. The newly appointed spokesperson then repeated China’s stock answers.

“China’s position on the relevant issue is consistent and clear. As neighbour and friend to both Pakistan and India we hope the two countries will properly address their differences through dialogue and manage and control the situation besides jointly work for the peace and stability of South Asia and the growth of the region,” Geng said.

On the Kashmir issue, he said: “With regard to the Kashmir issue, we believe it is an issue left over from history. We hope the relevant parties will peacefully resolve the issue through dialogue and consultation.

Yu was quoted as saying by the office of the chief minister of Punjab province of Pakistan that in case of any [foreign] aggression, Beijing “will extend its full support to Pakistan”. It further quoted Yu as saying: “We are and will be siding with Pakistan on Kashmir issue… There is no justification for atrocities on unarmed Kashmiris in…[India-] held Kashmir and the Kashmir dispute should be solved in accordance with aspirations of the Kashmiris.”

Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper reported the statement, linking it with the “…rising tensions at borders with India, China has assured in unequivocal terms its support in case of any foreign aggression and also supported Pakistan’s stance on the Kashmir dispute”. The statement was quoted widely in the Pakistani media and seen to be the latest and unequivocal evidence of China’s strong support of Pakistan. India has said terrorists from Pakistan were behind the Uri army camp attack earlier this month that left 18 soldiers dead.

At Monday’s briefing, Geng also commented on the recent allegations of incursions across the Line of Actual Control by soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army, saying that Chinese personnel had abided by bilateral agreements on the border.

“China’s position on the boundary question between India and China is consistent and clear. The boundary between the two sides is yet to be demarcated. We are engaged in dialogue and consultation to properly address differences in this regard,” he said.