Ukraine and the Baltic States condemned the Ambassador of China for words about Crimea and sovereignty

The statement of the Chinese Ambassador to France, Liu Shaye, about the ownership of Crimea and the sovereignty of the post-Soviet countries provoked criticism from the Baltic countries and Ukraine.

On April 21, a Chinese diplomat on the air of the French TV channel LCI declaredthat the countries of the former USSR “do not have an effective status in international law, since there is no international agreement specifying their status as sovereign countries.” Crimea, he added, was originally Russian, but Soviet Secretary General Nikita Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine. According to the diplomat, it is necessary to achieve an early cease-fire, and not to “cavil about” questions about the post-Soviet borders.

Ukrainian Ambassador to Paris Vadym Omelchenko, commenting on the words of the Chinese diplomat, said that he either had “obvious problems with geography” or that his position was at odds with Beijing’s official position on a Ukrainian settlement based on international law and the UN Charter.

Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics, in turn, called the words of the Chinese ambassador unacceptable. On April 24, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic summoned the Chargé d’Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Riga to give explanations. “This step is agreed with Lithuania and Estonia,” he wrote on his Twitter.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis called Liu Shaye’s statement another argument in favor of the fact that the Baltic countries cannot be trusted with China as a mediator in the settlement in Ukraine. Vilnius and Tallinn also summoned diplomats from China for explanations, writes Delphi.

In early April, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced its readiness to discuss with the European Union a political settlement of the situation in Ukraine.

February 24 China introduced its plan to exit the Ukrainian conflict, which includes 12 points, including respect for the sovereignty of all countries, the cessation of hostilities, the start of peace negotiations, etc. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that China’s proposal is more like “expressing thoughts” than peace plan. He added that such an initiative is unrealizable without a clause on the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine. After that, Zelensky repeatedly stated his desire to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

China’s actions were criticized by the United States in late March, when Xi Jinping arrived in Moscow for a three-day visit. The White House said that China is not an impartial party in the situation around Ukraine, since Beijing “did not condemn” the conduct of the special operation and did not refuse to buy Russian energy resources. Washington also noted that Xi Jinping has never spoken to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.