View source for Trans-Karakoram Tract

{{Short description|Chinese-administered area of Kashmir}}

{{Infobox territory
| official_name      = Trans-Karakoram Tract
| other_name         = Shaksgam Tract
| native_name        = <!-- If different from name -->
| native_name_lang   =
| settlement_type    = Region administered by [[China]] as a part of [[Xinjiang]]
| nickname           =
| motto              =
| pushpin_map        = Trans-Karakoram Tract and Aksai Chin relief
| pushpin_label_position = top
| pushpin_map_alt    =
| pushpin_map_caption = Location of the Trans-Karakoram Tract within the Southern [[Xinjiang]] region is disputed by India
| pushpin_mapsize    = 300px
| coordinates        = {{coord|36|01|33|N|76|38|46|E|type:landmark|display=title,inline}}
| coor_pinpoint      =
| coordinates_footnotes =
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Administering state]]
| subdivision_name   = [[China]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[Autonomous regions of China|Autonomous Region]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Xinjiang]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[Prefectures of China|Prefecture]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Kashgar Prefecture|Kashgar]]
| subdivision_type3  = County
| subdivision_name3  = [[Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County|Taxkorgan]] and [[Kargilik County|Kargilik]]
| area_total_km2     = 5180
}}
[[File:Kashmir Region November 2019.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Central Intelligence Agency]] map of the former [[British Raj|British Indian]] [[princely state]] of [[Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] with present-day borders, showing the Trans-Karakoram Tract in the northern part of the state (hatched red){{efn|[[Siachen Glacier]] is under Indian administration despite being labelled "contested territory" in the map.}}]]
The '''Trans-Karakoram Tract''' ({{zh|c=喀喇昆仑走廊|p=Kālǎkūnlún zǒuláng}}), also known as the '''Shaksgam Tract''' ({{langx|ur|{{nq|شکسگام}}|translit=Shaksgām}}), is an area of approximately {{convert|2000|sqmi|km2|order=flip|abbr=on}}<ref>{{Cite web|last=Trivei|first=Abishek|date=8 July 2019|title=Why the 1963 Sino-Pakistan Boundary Agreement Is Unlawful in Light of the Recent ICJ Advisory Opinion on the Chagos Archipelago, 2019|url=https://www.jurist.org/commentary/2019/07/abhishek-trivedi-sino-pakistan-boundary/|access-date=2021-11-07|website=www.jurist.org}}</ref> north of the [[Karakoram]] watershed, including the [[Shaksgam River|Shaksgam valley]].{{sfn|Snedden, Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris|2015|p=238}}{{sfn|Schofield, Kashmir in Conflict|2003|p=101}} The tract is administered by China as part of its [[Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County|Taxkorgan]] and [[Yecheng County|Yecheng]] counties in the [[Xinjiang|Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region]]. Originally, the Indian government claimed sovereignty over the Shaksgam tract following the [[Instrument of Accession (Jammu and Kashmir)|accession of Jammu and Kashmir]] to India in 1947. However, Pakistan took control of the region during the [[Indo-Pakistani war of 1947–1948|First India-Pakistan War]] and subsequently ceded it to China in 1963 through the [[Sino-Pakistan Agreement]], and a border based on actual ground positions was recognized as the international border by China and Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web|last=Noorani|first=A. G.|date=20 October 2006|title=Facing the truth|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/world-affairs/article30211220.ece|website=Frontline|quote=The Shaksgam Valley was never part of Kashmir and the northern and eastern boundaries of Kashmir were undefined}}</ref><ref name=Time>{{cite magazine |url =http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,870184,00.html | title =Signing with the Red Chinese | magazine =Time (magazine)|date =15 March 1963 | access-date =28 October 2019 |url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130318005638/https://time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,870184,00.html | archive-date =18 March 2013}}</ref> The Shaksgam Tract, along with the entire Kashmir region, is claimed by India.<ref>{{cite book|author=R Chandrashekhar|url=https://cenjows.gov.in/pdf/Layout_THE-GILGIT-AND-BALTISTAN-REGIONS-OF-J&K_%20Inside_28-11-17.pdf|title=THE GILGIT AND BALTISTAN REGIONS OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR STATE|date=2017|website=Center for Joint Warfare Studies|publisher=Xtreme Office Aids Pvt. Ltd.|isbn=978-93-84492-36-6|location=[[New Delhi]]|page=63|quote=An area that is legally part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir has since 1963 been administered by China as a part of Kargilik County and Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in the Kashgar Prefecture of Xinjiang Autonomous Region. Prior to 1963 the Shaksgam tract had been administered as a part of Shigar.}}{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="3rdedition">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/CompleteAtlasOfTheWorld3rdEdition2016|title=Complete Atlas Of The World|date=2016|publisher=[[Penguin Random House]]|edition=3|page=[https://archive.org/details/CompleteAtlasOfTheWorld3rdEdition2016/page/n239 238]|quote=(claimed by India)|via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref> Further, New Delhi has never accepted the [[Sino-Pakistan Agreement|China-Pakistan boundary pact]], asserting that Islamabad "unlawfully" attempted to cede the area to Beijing.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-05-02 |title=India lodges protest with China over its infra development in Shaksgam valley |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-protest-china-infra-development-shaksgam-valley-9303777/ |access-date=2024-06-12 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

Most of the tract is composed of the Shaksgam Valley and was formerly administered as part of [[Shigar District|Shigar]], a district (formerly a [[tehsil]]) in the [[Baltistan]] region. A polo ground in Shaksgam was built by the Amacha Royal family of Shigar, and the Rajas of Shigar used to invite the Amirs of [[Hotan]] to play polo there.<ref name="Sering">Senge Sering, [https://archive.claws.in/732/polo-diplomacy-as-part-of-indo-pak-cbms-any-takers-senge-sering.html Polo Diplomacy as Part of Indo-Pak CBMs: Any Takers?], Centre for Land Warfare Studies, 1 December 2011.</ref> Most of the names of the mountains, lakes, rivers and passes are in Balti/Ladakhi, suggesting that this land had been part of Baltistan/Ladakh region for a long time.

The tract is one of the most inhospitable areas of the world, with some of the highest mountains. Bounded by the [[Kunlun Mountains]] in the north, and the [[Karakoram]] peaks to the south, including [[Broad Peak]], [[K2]] and [[Gasherbrum]], on the southeast it is adjacent to the highest battlefield in the world on the [[Siachen Glacier]] region which is controlled by [[India]].

== History ==

[[File:Jammu and Kashmir in 1888 Survey of India map.jpg|thumb|300px|Boundary of Kashmir in the 1888 [[Survey of India]] map of India. The undefined boundary shown in dash line from [[Malubiting]], [[Raskam]], Aktagh to Karakunlun Shan {{coord|35.28312|N|80.261863|E|region:CN|display=inline}}]]
[[File:Map India and Pakistan 1-250,000 Tile NI 43-4 Chulung.jpg|thumb|300px|Detailed map showing part of the Trans-Karakoram Tract near the [[Shaksgam River]] ([[Army Map Service|United States Army Map Service]], 1953)]]
[[File:Shaksgam valley.jpg|thumb|300px|The Shaksgam Valley ([[Xinjiang|Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region]]) photographed in August 2008]]

Historically the people of [[Hunza (princely state)|Hunza]] cultivated and grazed areas to the north of the [[Karakoram]], and the [[Mir of Hunza]] claimed those areas as part of Hunza's territories. Those areas included the [[Raskam]] Valley, north of the Shaksgam Valley.<ref name=Lall>{{citation |last=Lall |first=J. S. |title=Aksaichin and Sino-Indian Conflict |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OlJuAAAAMAAJ |year=1989 |publisher=Allied Publishers |page=85}}
</ref>

In 1889 the first expedition to the Shaksgam Valley by a European was undertaken by [[Francis Younghusband]] (who referred to the Shaksgam as the Oprang).<ref>{{Cite book
| last = Younghusband
| first = Francis
| author-link = Francis Younghusband
| title = The Heart of a Continent
| year = 1896
| pages = 200ff
| publisher = Asian Educational Services
| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Avk88OI8bQkC
| isbn = 9788120608504}}</ref>

In March 1899 the British proposed, in a formal Note from Sir [[Claude MacDonald]] to China, a new boundary between China and British India. The Note proposed that China should relinquish its claims to suzerainty over Hunza, and in return Hunza should relinquish its claims to most of the [[Taghdumbash Pamir|Taghdumbash]] and Raskam districts.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|pp=102,&nbsp; 366}} The Note proposed a border which broadly followed the main [[Karakoram]] crest dividing the watersheds of the [[Indus River]] and the [[Tarim River]], but with a variation to pass through a Hunza post at Darwaza near the [[Shimshal]] Pass.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|pp=102,&nbsp; 366}} The Chinese did not respond to the Note and the Indian government never revisited the boundary in the same form again.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|pp=74–75,&nbsp; 102}} The [[Macartney-MacDonald Line|MacDonald line]] was modified in 1905 to include in India a small area east of the Shimshal Pass, to put the border on a stretch of the Shaksgam River.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|p=308}}

At the same time, in view of "[[The Great Game]]", Britain was concerned at the danger of Russian expansion as [[Qing dynasty]] China weakened and so adopted a policy of claiming a border north of the Shaksgam River. This followed a line proposed by Sir John Ardagh in a Memorandum of 1897.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|p=107}} That border included the Mir of Hunza's claim over the Raskam Valley. However, British administration never extended north of the Karakoram watershed.<ref>{{harvp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|p=298}}, citing Alistair Lamb in the ''Australian Outlook'', December 1964</ref>

The [[Gazetteer]] of Kashmír and Ladákh, first published in 1890 and compiled under the direction of the Quarter Master General in India in the Intelligence Branch, gives a description and details of places inside Kashmir. It includes a description of the Híñdutásh Pass in north eastern Kashmir in the [[Aksai Chin]].  The Gazetteer states in pages 520 and 364 that  “The eastern (Kuenlun) range forms the southern boundary of Khotan”, “and is crossed by two passes,  the Yangi or Elchi Diwan, .... and the Hindutak (i.e. Híñdutásh ) Díwán”. It describes [[Khotan]] as “ A province of the Chinese Empire lying to the north of the Eastern Kuenlun range, which here forms the boundary of Ladák".<ref>The Gazetteer of Kashmír and Ladák compiled under the direction of the Quarter Master General in India in the Intelligence Branch (1890), at page 493</ref>

From 1899 until the independence of India and creation of Pakistan in 1947, the representation of the border on maps varied. In 1926 [[Kenneth Mason (geographer)|Kenneth Mason]] explored and surveyed the Shaksgam Valley.<ref name=Mason>{{Cite book
  | last = Mason
  | first = Kenneth
  | author-link = Kenneth Mason (geographer)
  | title = Exploration of the Shaksgam Valley and Aghil ranges, 1926
  | year = 1928
  | pages = 72ff
  | publisher = Asian Educational Services
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=LrbVqD06aXYC
  | isbn =9788120617940 }}</ref>
In 1927 the Government of [[British Raj|British India]] abandoned any claim to the area north of the MacDonald line, but the decision did not find its way on to British maps.{{sfnp|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970|pp=107,&nbsp; 298}} By 1959, however, Chinese maps were published showing large areas west and south of the MacDonald line in China. That year, the Government of Pakistan announced its willingness to consult on the boundary question.<ref name=ibs>{{Citation
| author=The Geographer. Office of the Geographer. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. Department of State, United States of America
| title=China&nbsp;– Pakistan Boundary
| url=http://blankonthemap.free.fr/3_geographie/33_karakoram/337_siachen/doc/Boundaries_Shaksgam.pdf
| series=International Boundary Study
| volume=85
| date=November 15, 1968
| publisher=Florida State University College of Law
}}</ref>

Since 1947, India has claimed sovereignty over the entire area of the pre-1947 independent state of Jammu and Kashmir and maintains that Pakistan and China do not share a common border.

In 1954 the ''[[Times Atlas]]'' predominantly depicted the Cis-Kuen Lun Tract (the region between the Karakoram and Kuen Lun mountains) as a part of Kashmir under the caption [http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~225351~5506055:Pakistan,-Kashmir,-Afghanistan--Pla?qvq=q%3AAfghanistan%3Bsort%3Apub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_list_no_initialsort%3Blc%3ARUMSEY~8~1&sort=pub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_list_no_initialsort&mi=70&trs=389 "Undefined Frontier area"].  The northern border published by the 1954 ''Times Atlas'' more or less followed the watershed of the Kuen Lun range from the Taghdumbash Pamir to the Yangi Dawan pass north of Kulanaldi, but east of the Yangi Dawan Pass, the border deviated from the watershed of the Kuen Lun range on the edge of the highlands of [[Kashmir]].

== Sino-Pakistan Frontier Agreement ==
{{Main|Sino-Pakistan Agreement}}

[[File:Alignment Official Pakistan map 1962.jpg|thumb|300px|Official alignment of the Government of Pakistan in 1962. The border is in the extreme north and is depicted as a dotted line with the caption Alignment Official Pakistan Map 1962]]
In 1959, the Pakistani government became concerned over Chinese maps that showed areas the Pakistanis considered their own as part of China. In 1961, [[Ayub Khan (President of Pakistan)|Ayub Khan]] sent a formal note to China; there was no reply. It is thought that the Chinese might not have been motivated to negotiate with Pakistan because of Pakistan's relations with India.

In 1962 the [[Government of Pakistan]] published an official map depicting the alignment of the northern border of Kashmir, which depicted much of the Cis-Kuen Lun Tract as part of Kashmir. The alignment published by the Government of Pakistan was mostly similar to the portrayal of the northern Border of Kashmir depicted in the 1954 Times Atlas, though in places, the Government of Pakistan's position deviated from the 1954 Times Atlas, and included areas as part of Kashmir which were to the north of the border of Kashmir shown in the Times Atlas. Thus the official position of the Government of Pakistan prior to the 1963 Sino-Pakistan Agreement was that the northern border of Pakistan was on the Kuen Lun range, and the territory ceded by the Government of Pakistan was not just restricted to the Shaksgam Valley but extended to the Kuen Lun range. For an idea of the extent of the Trans-Karakoram Tract or the Cis-Kuen Lun Tract, [https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/fullscreen.html?object=125 a view the map] (C) from the [https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/fullscreen.html?object=125 Joe Schwartzberg's Historical Atlas of South Asia at DSAL in Chicago] with the caption, "The boundary of Kashmir with China as portrayed and proposed by [[United Kingdom|Britain]] prior to 1947" would show that the geographical and territorial extent of the Trans-Karakoram Tract or the Cis-Kuen Lun Tract is more or less the territory enclosed between the northernmost line and the innermost lines.

[[Image:7 15 BroadPeak.jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Broad Peak]] lies on the border of the Tract]]
After Pakistan voted to grant China a seat in the United Nations, the Chinese withdrew the disputed maps in January 1962, agreeing to enter border talks in March. Negotiations between the nations officially began on October 13, 1962, and resulted in the Sino-Pakistan Agreement signed on 2 March 1963 by foreign ministers [[Chen Yi (communist)|Chen Yi]] of China and [[Zulfikar Ali Bhutto]] of Pakistan.<ref name=Time/>

The Indian government took the view that the agreement resulted in the surrendering of a significant area to China. In the opinion of [[Jawaharlal Nehru]], "According to the survey of Pakistan maps, even those published in 1962, about {{convert|11000|sqmi|km2|disp=sqbr}} of [[Sinkiang]] territory formed part of Kashmir. If one goes by these maps, Pakistan has obviously surrendered over {{convert|12810.87|sqmi|km2|disp=sqbr}} of territory".<ref>Formal statement of Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru in the [[Parliament of India]] on March 5, 1963</ref>

== See also ==

; Glaciers
* [[Yinsugaiti Glacier]]
* [[Sarpo Laggo Glacier]]

; AGPL (Actual Ground Position Line), south to north runs through the following:
* [[NJ9842]], LoC ends and AGPL begins
* [[Gyong La]]
* [[Chumik Glacier]]
* [[Saltoro Mountains]]
* [[Saltoro Kangri]]
* [[Ghent Kangri]]
* [[Bilafond La]]
* [[Sia La]]
* [[Indira Col]], AGPL ends at LAC

; Borders
* [[Actual Ground Position Line]] (AGPL)
* [[India–Pakistan border|India–Pakistan International Border]] (IB)
* [[Line of Control]] (LoC)
* [[Line of Actual Control]] (LAC)
* [[Sir Creek]] (SC)
* [[Borders of China]]
* [[Borders of India]]
* [[:Category:Borders of Pakistan|Borders of Pakistan]]

; Conflicts
* [[Kashmir conflict]]
* [[Siachen conflict]]
* [[Sino-Indian War|Sino-Indian conflict]]
* [[:Category:Territorial disputes of China|List of disputed territories of China]]
* [[List of disputed territories of India]]
* [[:Category:Territorial disputes of Pakistan|List of disputed territories of Pakistan]]
* [[Northern Areas]]

; Operations
* [[Operation Meghdoot]], by India
* [[Operation Rajiv]], by India
* [[Operation Safed Sagar]], by India

; Other related topics
* [[Awards and decorations of the Indian Armed Forces]]
* [[Bana Singh]], after whom Quaid Post was renamed to Bana Top
* [[Dafdar]], westernmost town in Trans-Karakoram Tract
* [[India-China Border Roads]]
* [[List of extreme points of India]]
* [[Sino-Pakistan Agreement]] for transfer of Trans-Karakoram Tract to China

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|2}}

== Bibliography ==

* {{citation |last=Schofield |first=Victoria |author-link=Victoria Schofield |title=Kashmir in Conflict |publisher=I. B. Taurus & Co |location=London and New York |year=2003 |orig-year=First published in 2000 |isbn=1860648983 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rkTetMfI6QkC |ref={{sfnref|Schofield, Kashmir in Conflict|2003}}}}
* {{citation |last=Snedden |first=Christopher |author-link=Christopher Snedden |title=Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s5KMCwAAQBAJ |year=2015 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-1-84904-342-7 |ref={{sfnref|Snedden, Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris|2015}}}}
* {{Citation |last=Woodman |first=Dorothy |author-link=Dorothy Woodman |title=Himalayan Frontiers |publisher=Barrie & Rockcliff |year=1969 |ref={{sfnref|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1969}}}}
** {{citation |last=Woodman |first=Dorothy |title=Himalayan Frontiers: A Political Review of British, Chinese, Indian, and Russian Rivalries |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tkCAAAAAIAAJ |year=1970  |publisher=Praeger |ref={{sfnref|Woodman, Himalayan Frontiers|1970}}}}

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary|Trans-Karakoram Tract}}

* [http://jammukashmir.nic.in Jammu and Kashmir Official Website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080511194625/http://www.northernareas.org.pk/ Northern Areas Official Website]

{{Regions and administrative territories of Kashmir}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Tracts]]
[[Category:China in the Kashmir conflict]]
[[Category:Sino-Indian border dispute]]
[[Category:China–Pakistan relations]]
[[Category:Geography of Xinjiang]]
[[Category:Kashgar Prefecture]]
[[Category:Karakoram]]
[[Category:Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County]]
[[Category:Subregions of Kashmir]]