"We are listening to the voices of many Islamic friends on the issue of Kashmir, China has the same desire on it. China will continue to support the efforts of Islamic countries to resolve disputes including Kashmir."
On 23 March, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said this in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). The 48th meeting of the foreign ministers of the member countries of the OIC was being held in Pakistan.
This statement of Wang Yi came at a time when there was contact between India and China regarding his visit to India. Now Wang Yi has reached India via Kabul from Pakistan. There are reports in the media that he is going to meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. However, nothing has been said so far from the Ministry of External Affairs or the government on this visit.
Criticizing this statement of China in Pakistan, India said, "We criticize the unnecessary reference to India in the speech of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the opening ceremony (of the OIC meeting). Matters related to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir are completely internal matters of India. No country in the world including China has any right to comment on this.
In sharp criticism, the name of the Chinese Foreign Minister was taken from India's side, which shows that India is adopting strictness in this matter.
What is the meaning of this statement made by China in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation? Is Pakistan uniting member countries against India through this forum? Or is this statement just a ritual payment, which is not going to have any effect on India?
Meaning of China's statement on Kashmir
This is not the first time that China has made a statement on Jammu and Kashmir while interfering in the internal affairs of India. In the year 2019, China raised eyebrows even after abolishing the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Then China had registered its protest on different forums.
Avtar Singh Bhasin, the author of the book 'Nehru, Tibet and China', explains the reason behind this that China never considered Jammu and Kashmir as a part of India. Avtar Singh Bhasin, who has written for years on relations with India and its neighboring countries, cites some important events in history to explain this.
In 1954, there was an agreement between China and India regarding Tibet, which we also call the Panchsheel Agreement. This agreement was about mutual relations and trade between Tibet and India in the region of China.
In a conversation with the BBC, Avtar Singh Bhasin says, "The Ruddak and Rawang Passages used to connect Ladakh with Tibet. India had given to China by writing in the draft agreement that pilgrimage and trade in Tibet would continue through these passages, but China refused to accept it. China said that Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed areas. It was not included in the final agreement.
This was not the first time that China has refused to recognize Jammu and Kashmir as a part of India. Avtar Singh Bhasin narrates another incident. "In 1955, Kushak Bakula, the deputy minister of the state of Kashmir, wanted to go to Tibet. India sent a note to China that ministerial-level official arrangements should be made for them. China refused to do so. China said that VVIP arrangements can be made for them but arrangements cannot be made by giving them the status of ministers.
This meant that China did not want to change its view on Jammu and Kashmir by granting minister status to Kushak Bakula. This is the reason why China makes controversial statements on Jammu and Kashmir in the eyes of India on all forums.
There are other reasons for China's statement on Jammu and Kashmir in the OIC. Speaking to the BBC, Professor Faisal Ahmed, an expert on China affairs at the Four School of Management, says, "China makes such rhetoric in different forums to increase regional influence, but it does not have any significant effect on India." ''
Visit of Foreign Minister of China to India
Two years ago, Chinese soldiers had infiltrated many places in Ladakh. After this, there was a violent clash between the soldiers of China and India in Galvan Valley in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed and many Chinese soldiers were killed. This is the first time that a senior Chinese leader is visiting India after the violent clashes in Galvan.
The question is that if this visit was to take place, then why did China make a statement in the IOC on Jammu and Kashmir just before that? Wouldn't this statement hurt the conversation?
Professor Faisal Ahmed, an expert on Chinese affairs, says, "It is a big deal for the Foreign Minister of China to come to India. We should see through that lens that China is giving importance to the fact that India is a big player in Asia. Earlier it was said that China wanted unipolar Asia in the middle of a multi-polar world. But now China feels that it cannot stand alone in Asia. If Asia is to be established as a big power, then it has to take India along.
Experts say that China is trying to build a barricade against America with the help of India. In such a situation, joining India will be beneficial for China. Professor Faisal Ahmed believes, "In the Russia-Ukraine crisis, China feels that India is keeping distance from America. In such a situation, he can improve his relations with India, and together both can emerge as a big power.
What do Muslim countries think about Jammu and Kashmir?
Statements are made about Jammu and Kashmir every year from the forum of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Pakistan plays a major role in this. Pakistan tries to show how many Islamic countries it has the support of Jammu and Kashmir.
Foreign affairs expert Qamar Agha believes that India used to worry a little before such statements, but now it is not so. In a conversation with BBC, Qamar Agha says, "India's relations with Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar have become very good. PM Modi has got the highest civilian honor of these countries. There are statements about Kashmir in the OIC, but in bilateral talks with India, no Islamic country raises this issue, nor does any campaign in support of it.
According to Qamar Agha, Pakistan always brings the Kashmir issue to the forum of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, but nothing is achieved.
In the year 2020 also, Kashmir was mentioned in the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of OIC. In this meeting, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi raised the issue of Kashmir loudly. Even at that time, Pakistan did not get the support of Arab countries.
How long does Pakistan run in OIC?
OIC is an organization of Islamic or Muslim majority countries. It has a total of 57 countries as its members. Saudi Arabia and UAE dominate the OIC. Saudi Arabia is not even among the top 10 countries in the world that have the largest Muslim population. However, Saudi Arabia is very important from the point of view of Islam due to Mecca and Medina.
According to experts, the relations of Pakistan with these two countries are not that good. Saudi Arabia wants Pakistan to pay off its debts quickly. Especially since Pakistani PM Imran Khan tried to create an organization parallel to OIC with Turkey, Iran, and Malaysia. In 2020, the UAE even temporarily banned the issuance of new visas for Pakistani nationals.
If we talk about India, then it is not a member of OIC, despite that India is included in the top three countries of the world in terms of the Muslim population.
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