China has released a third set of names for cities in Arunachal Pradesh in Chinese, Tibetan, and Pinyin characters in a bid to reclaim the Indian state. China s Civil Affairs Ministry released the standardised names of 11 places for Arunachal Pradesh, which it called Zangnan, the southern part of Tibet, in accordance with regulations on geographical names issued by China's cabinet on Sunday.
The ministry released official names of 11 places and gave precise coordinates, including two land areas, two residential areas, five mountain peaks, and two rivers. The categories of places and their subordinate administrative districts were further listed, according to the news agency PTI, citing the Chinese government's mouthpiece Global Times.
The list of places in Arunachal Pradesh has been released by the Chinese government for the first time. The first batch of standardised names for 6 places was released in 2017 by the Chinese government under the Xi Jinping-led government, and the second batch of 15 places was released in 2021.
China announced the first set of names in 2017 following Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh. India has previously dismissed China's move of renaming places in Arunachal Pradesh and asserted that the state will always be an integral part of India.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in December 2021 that Arunachal Pradesh will always be an integral part of India. Arunachal Pradesh does not change this fact by assigning invented names to places. The Global Times quoted Chinese experts who claimed the announcement was a legitimate move and that it was China's sovereign right to standardise the geographical names.