China rejects reports of presence of Chinese troops in PoK

K J M Varma
Beijing, Apr 7 (PTI) China Thursday dismissed reports
about the presence of its troops in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir
(PoK), days after a top Indian commander expressed concern
over the presence of Chinese military in the region as "too
close for comfort".
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei told a
media briefing here that "the reports are baseless and
ridiculous."
Lt Gen K T Parnaik, India's Northern Army Commander,
had said: "Chinese presence in Gilgit-Baltistan and the
Northern Areas is increasing steadily... There are many people
who are concerned about the fact that if there was to be
hostility between us and Pakistan, what would be the
complicity of Chinese."
"Not only they are in the neighbourhood but the fact
that they are actually present and stationed along the LoC,"
Lt Gen Parnaik said in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir
last week at a seminar.
"As part of (China's) 'strings of pearls' policy,
Chinese footprints are too close for comfort," Parnaik added.
In New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs has sought
a report from Defence Ministry on the issue.
This is not the first time China has dismissed such
reports.
Last year, China officially clarified to India that
some of its personnel were present in POK to render flood
relief assistance amid reports in the American media about the
presence of large number of Chinese troops in Gilgit-Baltistan
areas.
India has also time and again conveyed its concerns
over the presence of Chinese personnel working in different
projects in POK as it was a disputed territory.
The issue reportedly figured during the last December
visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to New Delhi.
Fresh Indian concerns over the issue and the reported
observations of the top Indian General come ahead of the
scheduled bi-lateral meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh and Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the
Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) summit
at the Chinese resort of Sanya on April 13-14.
Both sides have held hectic parleys over the agenda
for the Singh-Hu meeting which was expected to wide ranging,
including issues such as China's promise to address New
Delhi's concerns related to stapled visas being issued to
residents of Jammu and Kashmir and steps to address the trade
imbalance between the two two neighbours.
Though India-China trade last year touched a record
USD 61.7 billion, India’s concerns have grown as China’s
exports crossed over USD 40 billion, increasing the trade
imbalance between the two countries.