After a fatal military confrontation on their Himalayan border in 2020, relations between India and China have suffered.
The foreign ministry of India expressed its hope on Friday that Beijing will continue to permit Indian journalists to work in China and noted that New Delhi permits all international media to do so in India.
In reaction to India’s harassment of Chinese journalists, China declared two days prior that it had taken “appropriate” action.
A dispute over visas for each other’s journalists has arisen between India and China, whose ties have deteriorated since a deadly military conflict on their Himalayan frontier in 2020.
It started in April when it was made impossible for two Indian journalists working in Beijing to come back from their assignments in India.
At the time, China had stated that the move was a “corresponding countermeasure” to India’s handling of.
When Beijing declined to extend the visa of one of the two Indian journalists still present in China, tensions flared up once more this week.
Beijing said that this was in retaliation for India’s decision last month not to renew the visas of the final two Chinese state media employees present in India.
In India, “all foreign journalists, including Chinese journalists, have been pursuing journalistic activities without any restrictions or difficulties in reporting or doing media coverage,” according to Arindam Bagchi, a spokesman for the Indian foreign ministry.
Nevertheless, he added, “normal journalistic behaviour and activities, as well as the rules governing Journalist visas,” should not be violated.
While in China, Indian journalists have faced challenges, such as being unable to employ locals as correspondents or reporters, according to Bagchi.
According to Bagchi, they also encountered barriers to access and local travel.
“We hope that Chinese authorities facilitate Indian journalists’ continued presence and work in China,” he said.
Since the conflict in May 2020 that resulted in the deaths of 24 troops, military tensions between the neighbours have decreased, but diplomatic relations are still tense.
Last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that normal relations with China must be built on mutual respect, sensitivity, and interest and that maintaining peace along the border is crucial.
