After helping China in ADB,Oz says Arunachal part of India

Australia,which recently joined China in blocking an ADB loan for a project in Arunachal Pradesh,said it does not believe in the Chinese contention that the state is not a part of India.

Australia,which recently joined China in blocking an ADB loan for a project in Arunachal Pradesh,on Friday said it does not believe in the Chinese contention that the state is not a part of India.

Newly-appointed Australian High Commissioner Peter Verghese said Australia always considered Arunachal a part of India and its voting at Asian Development Bank against the loan was based on a broad position formulated by the management of the lending agency.

“It was not a pro-China or anti-India vote. We thought we should take a position based on the assessment by the management of the ADB,” Verghese said in New Delhi.

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“We always supported the Indian position (on Arunachal) and there is no change of our stand,” said Verghese,who presented his credentials to President Pratibha Patil earlier in the day.

Last month,Australia joined China in scuttling an ADB loan to an irrigation project in Arunachal Pradesh. China had lobbied for support,arguing that the Bank cannot fund projects in Arunachal Pradesh as it is a disputed area.

An attempt by China to scuttle the funding for the project a few months back had been thwarted by India.

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