China reaffirms sovereignty over Zangnan region, rejects India's renaming bid

China on Monday reaffirmed that the Zangnan region is its territory and rejected the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh" illegally established by India.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun made the remarks in a statement after India reportedly published "standard names" for 27 locations in "Arunachal Pradesh" on Aug 7.

India's Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement that formally identifying the locations on the map was aimed at "facilitating their accurate recognition and better awareness among the public at large".

Guo said India's attempt to replace names long used by China with its so-called "standard names" is illegal, null and void.

"Still less will it change the fact that Zangnan region belongs to China," he added.