The Ukrainian government this Sunday denounced an “absurd version” of the history of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, after controversial statements by China’s ambassador to France questioned the peninsula’s belonging to Ukraine.
The controversy arose after an interview of Lu Shaye, the Chinese ambassador to France, on French news channel LCI this Friday.
When asked if Crimea was Ukrainian, Lu replied, “It depends on how you look at the problem. There is a story. Crimea was Russian in the beginning.”
He argued that countries that emerged as independent nations after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 “have no effective status under international law because there is no international agreement confirming their status as sovereign nations”.
Mykhaïlo Podoliak, adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, responded on Twitter: “It is strange to hear an absurd version of Crimea’s history from a representative of a country that is meticulous about its millennium history.”
“All countries of the former USSR have a clear sovereign status enshrined in international law,” he added, urging Lu Shaye “not to repeat Russian propaganda.”
A statement released late Saturday by France’s foreign ministry said it “took note of the ambassador’s comments with dismay”.
“It is for China to say whether these statements reflect its position, and we hope they do not,” the statement added, pointing out that Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea is “illegal under international law.” .
Although Beijing says it is officially neutral, Chinese President Xi Jinping has never condemned the Russian invasion and has never spoken to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky by phone.
Xi recently went to Moscow to reaffirm his cooperation with Russian President Vladimir Putin under the guise of an anti-Western front.
Source: DN
