China Announces Two New Counties, One Including Parts Of India’s Aksai Chin

China has created new counties in Xinjiang, one of which is primarily composed of Indian territory that China illegally occupies in Aksai Chin.

The People’s Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region announced the establishment of two counties, He’an County and Hekang County, on Friday. The creation of these counties has been administered by Hotan Prefecture and approved by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council. This development comes just 10 days after the Special Representatives of India and China restarted boundary negotiations, which had been stalled for nearly five years.

Hongliu and Xeyidula townships have been designated as the “county seats” (administrative headquarters) of He’an and Hekang, respectively.

He’an County, in particular, encompasses a significant portion of the 38,000 sq. km area in Aksai Chin that India accuses China of illegally occupying. However, India has yet to comment on this matter.

Earlier this month, India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Beijing for the 23rd round of boundary negotiations. The two nations resumed the process, which had been stalled after the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s aggressive moves along the Line of Actual Control and the Indian Army’s counter-deployment in April-May 2020, leading to a military standoff in eastern Ladakh. This conflict escalated tensions between India and China, severely straining their relations.

Additionally, this month, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar reiterated that India remains “committed to engaging with China through bilateral discussions to arrive at a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable framework for a boundary settlement.”