Terming China’s decision to revive the practice of “stapled visas” for Indian sportspersons from Arunachal Pradesh as “unacceptable”, India on July 27 lodged a strong protest and said that it would respond suitably, after Beijing refused to give normal visas to three ‘Wushu’ martial arts athletes.
The athletes were part of the 12-member team bound for the World University Games in Chengdu on July 26 night. The team was held back after the government realised that the three athletes belonging to Arunachal Pradesh had been given “stapled visas”, which denotes China’s contention that the Indian State is disputed territory.
News of the new rift came even as the External Affairs Ministry admitted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping had discussed how to improve bilateral relations when they met in Bali in November 2022, something that the government had not revealed so far.
