Arunachal integral to India, border peace vital for China ties: MEA

India on Tuesday said the state of its border with China will reflect on the state of the broader bilateral relationship, while reiterating that Arunachal Pradesh is an "inalienable and integral" part of the country and rejecting Beijing's criticism of New Delhi identifying 27 places in the state by their standard names.

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said maintaining peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) remains of "utmost importance" and is essential for the overall development of India-China ties.

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"In matters relating to the border areas between India and China, we have always emphasised in discussions with the Chinese side that we consider these issues as most serious," Jaiswal said at a regular media briefing.

"We have also stated that the state of the border affairs will reflect on the state of our larger bilateral ties," he said.

Jaiswal said India reiterated this position at a meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China border affairs (WMCC) held last week, where the two sides held "frank discussions" and reviewed the situation along the LAC.

The two sides agreed to continue using existing diplomatic and military channels, including the WMCC, local commander-level meetings and other agreed mechanisms, to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation along the LAC, Jaiswal said.

On China's objections to India's identification of 27 locations and features in Arunachal Pradesh by their standard names, Jaiswal said India's position on the northeastern state remains unchanged.

"Let me reiterate this once again that Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable and integral part of India and this is a fact that is self-evident. At the same time, let me also underline that nothing can change this indisputable reality," he said.

The government recently identified 27 locations in Arunachal Pradesh by their standard names on the official Survey of India map, including places of strategic and historical significance such as Long Ju, Thag La, Jairampur, Jaswant Garh and the Sher-e-Thapa Memorial.

India has consistently rejected China's attempts to assign Chinese names to places in Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing refers to as "Zangnan", saying such efforts cannot alter the ground reality or confer any territorial rights.

China released its first list of six names for locations in Arunachal Pradesh in 2017, followed by 15 names in 2021 and another 11 in 2023.

India and China have taken several steps over the past year to rebuild ties after relations deteriorated following the deadly Galwan Valley clashes in 2020 and the subsequent military standoff along the LAC.

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In October 2024, the two sides reached a disengagement agreement covering Depsang and Demchok, the last two friction points in eastern Ladakh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping subsequently met in Kazan and discussed steps to improve bilateral ties.

Modi also travelled to China's Tianjin in August 2025 to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, where he held talks with Xi and said India was committed to advancing ties with China based on mutual trust, respect and sensitivity.

(With inputs from PTI)