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Vasudevan Sridharan

India has lodged protests with China and Pakistan over a new bus service from Xinjiang to Lahore, saying it passes through the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir, violating its sovereignty.
The bus project, linking Pakistan’s second-most populous city with the desert town of Kashgar in China’s far western region of Xinjiang, is part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – a cluster of infrastructure ventures underway across Pakistan since 2015 and worth nearly US$50 billion.
The five main projects of the Belt and Road Initiative
CPEC is part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, which is fiercely opposed by India.
The launch of the bus service coincides with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s five-day China visit that began on Thursday. Accompanied by a high-level delegation, he will meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang to discuss a range of bilateral matters.
Pakistan’s Catch-22: how can it keep Chinese investors happy, but not alienate the US?
India’s foreign ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar said on Wednesday: “We have lodged strong protests with China and Pakistan on the proposed bus service that will operate through Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir [PoK] under the so-called ‘China-Pakistan Economic Corridor’.”

The transport “will be a violation of India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”, Kumar added. The so-called PoK is a vital piece of land – the only point directly connecting China and Pakistan. This also means PoK cuts off the India-Afghanistan frontier.


But in the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s regular media briefing on Thursday, spokesman Lu Kang said he was not aware of India’s protest. He said the CPEC was an economic cooperation initiative and did not target “third parties”.
“It has nothing to do with territorial sovereignty disputes and does not affect China’s principled position on the Kashmir issue,” Lu said, in reference to China’s wish for India and Pakistan to settle the issue peacefully through dialogue.
Why Pakistan is backing away from Chinese-funded infrastructure projects
India’s Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale earlier issued a thinly veiled warning that infrastructure projects should not stoke tensions.
“Connectivity initiatives that straddle national boundaries must be pursued in a manner that respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations. They should promote trade, not tension,” said Gokhale in his address at a regional conference in New Delhi.

It has nothing to do with territorial sovereignty disputes
Lu Kang
Kashmir, the restive northernmost Indian state, is a hotbed for territorial claims. India and Pakistan have fought three wars against each other since their independence from Britain in 1947 and two of those conflicts centred on Kashmir territorial dispute.
Hence, any major project in the region ruffles New Delhi’s feathers.
The luxury bus trip, operated by Pakistan-based private agency North South Transport Network (NSTN), is a 30-hour-long journey through eye-catching northern Pakistan.
It will cost US$98 one way, and a return journey ticket is priced at US$173, Pakistani media reported.
Equipped with facilities such as high-speed Wi-fi and CCTV, buses will ply the route four times a week with nine stops throughout. They will depart from Pakistan on Mondays, Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, and leave China on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.


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Pakistan

India protests against China-Pakistan luxury bus route for ‘violating sovereignty’ in contested Kashmir

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi looks on as he attends a signing ceremony during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Qingdao, China. India has lodged a protest against a bus route proposed between Pakistan and China. Photo: AFP

Kashmiri protesters throw rocks and bricks at Indian security forces in Srinagar, India, Friday, Oct. 19, 2018. Government forces fired tear gas and pellets on Kashmiris who gathered after Friday afternoon prayers on a protest call given by separatists against the killing two rebels and a civilian during a gunbattle in Srinagar on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Pakistani labourers arrange a welcome billboard featuring the Chinese and Pakistani national flags ahead of the forthcoming visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping in Islamabad on April 18, 2015. Pakistan needs a "huge amount of financing" for infrastructure and energy projects and China is ready to announce help when President Xi Jinping visits next week, a foreign ministry official said April 17, 2015. AFP PHOTO / Farooq NAEEM

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Proposed route links Lahore with the desert town of Kashgar in Xinjiang
It is part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor


Foreign ministry said the transport link, from Lahore to Kashgar, operates through contested Kashmir region


Belt and Road Initiative

Kashmir

India protests against China-Pakistan luxury bus route for ‘violating sovereignty’ in contested Kashmir

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Proposed route links Lahore with the desert town of Kashgar in Xinjiang It is part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

Proposed route links Lahore with the desert town of Kashgar in Xinjiang

It is part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor