China will not attend the G20 meeting scheduled to be held in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar from Monday (May 22) citing ‘disputed territory as a reason.
Wang Wenbin said, “China firmly opposes holding any form of G20 meetings on disputed territory. We will not attend such meetings.”
India countered the objection by saying it is free to hold meetings on its own territory. It said peace and tranquility on its border is essential for normal ties with China.
J&K will witness the tourism working group meeting of G20 members from May 22-24 ahead of a G20 summit in New Delhi in September this year.
This is the first major international event in Jammu and Kashmir since its special status was scrapped in 2019 and it was bifurcated into two union territories.
Around 60 delegates from G20 countries are expected to attend the meeting in Srinagar. earlier it was expected that over 100 delegates would attend the meet.
Sources say Turkey has decided to stay away from the meeting, and Saudi Arabia has not registered for the event so far.