A Chinese newspaper on Monday slammed India's move to deny visa extensions to three Chinese journalists as "a petty act" and called for countermeasures to restrict visas for Indian citizens.
Three Chinese journalists based in Mumbai and New Delhi for China's State-run Xinhua News Agency have been told to leave India by July 31.
On Monday, an editorial in the Global Times, a tabloid known for its often hard line views and widely read in Beijing, slammed the move as "petty" and said that "speculation is swirling that India is taking revenge against China for the latter's opposition to India joining the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)".
"If New Delhi is really taking revenge due to the NSG membership issue, there will be serious consequences," the paper warned.
"The act has sent negative messages and media communications between China and India will inevitably be negatively impacted. India has a suspicious mind. No matter whether Chinese reporters apply for a long-term or a temporary journalist visa, they will come across many troubles. Complaints about difficulties of acquiring an Indian visa have also been heard from other Chinese who deal with India," the paper said.
JOURNALISTS ALREADY ON VISA EXTENSION: MEA
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) officials have denied they were being expelled, and said that the journalists were already on visa extensions which had been done multiple times. The MEA has also said it would welcome Xinhua to send successors for the three journalists.
Sources at Xinhua in Beijing have however questioned that explanation, pointing out that only one of the three, the bureau chief in Delhi Wu Qiang, had been posted in Delhi for several years and was on a visa extension, but two others in Mumbai had only been sent to India around a year ago, including the bureau chief in Mumbai, Tang Lu, and this did not apply to them.
Some reports have suggested that "non-journalistic" work beyond the reporters' brief was perhaps behind the move, but Xinhua insists that no reasons have been given to the journalists for the denial.
CHINA PAPER CALLS FOR COUNTERMEASURES AFTER INDIA DENIES CHINESE VISAS
The editorial called for China "to take actions to display our reaction", suggesting Beijing should respond with similar countermeasures. "We at least should make a few Indians feel Chinese visas are also not easy to get," the newspaper said.
A report in the newspaper rejected the claims made in some media reports that the journalists were effectively being expelled for meeting with Tibetan activists near Bengaluru and entering restricted areas with falsified identities, as some reports had suggested.
Lu Pengfei, a former People's Daily reporter in India, told the paper he had visited Dharamsala and met activists without problems in 2014 and that "Bengaluru is not a restricted area".
"I have frequently met exiled Tibetan activists through intermediaries, and even spoke to the Dalai Lama. I should have been expelled several times if that was the reason the Indian government gave. It was very likely an act of revenge against China for denying India membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)," the reporter suggested.
Zhang Jiadong, a professor with the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, told the newspaper the incident "indicate[s] an increasing mistrust between the two countries. India thinks China does not pay it enough respect as a regional or global power. However, we should have faith as the two sides possess the possibility of more cooperation and common interests," he added
