India, China spar over athletes' visas for Asian Games

New Delhi says athletes from northeastern state, a region claimed by China, denied entry to attend multi-sport event in Hangzhou- China says it was athletes that refused to accept visas

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – India has accused China of discriminating against three of its athletes in a "targeted and pre-mediated" manner who were unable to travel to Hangzhou for the Asian Games set to begin on Saturday.

The three women wushu athletes are from India’s eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in full.

Arindam Bagchi, spokesman for Indian External Affairs Ministry, said Friday that China denied accreditation and entry to the athletes.

New Delhi "firmly rejects differential treatment of Indian citizens on the basis of domicile or ethnicity. Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India," he said in a statement.

He said China’s action violates "both the spirit of the Asian Games and the rules governing their conduct," and as a mark of protest India cancelled a trip by its sports minister to the multi-sports event.

Wei Jizhong, chairman of Olympic Council of Asia's ethics committee, however, said China did not refuse entry to the athletes.

"Applicable visas were already granted to the three athletes by the Chinese embassy, which can be used to enter China," he told reporters. "It was the athletes that refused to accept the visas."

Asked about the visa issue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning in a daily news briefing said: "China welcomes athletes from all countries to come to Hangzhou to participate in the Asian Games with legal documents."

The spokeswoman, however, reiterated China's claim over Arunachal Pradesh, saying the "Chinese government doesn't recognize the so-called Arunachal Pradesh," and the South Tibet region is part of China's territory.

Disputes over the long border between the two nations run deep. They fought a war in 1962, and clashed more recently in June 2020, leading to 24 deaths.

In August, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, and agreed to ask their officials to work at resolving their border dispute.

Kaynak:

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