The remarks of the Chinese ambassador to France, Liu Shaye, on the ownership of Crimea and the sovereignty of the countries of the post-Soviet space provoked a strong reaction from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and from Ukraine.
Earlier, Liu Shaye gave an interview to the French channel LCI. He said that the countries of the former USSR “have no effective status in international law, since there is no international agreement that would specify their status as sovereign countries”. Turning to the subject of Crimea, the Chinese diplomat said that “it depends on how you perceive the problem”. The ambassador said the peninsula “originally belonged to Russia”, and during the Soviet era “Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine”.
“It is unfortunate that the representative of the People’s Republic of China holds such views. Such positions are incomprehensible to us,” Delfi quotes Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna as saying.
The foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania summoned the Chinese ambassadors to explain China’s official position on this issue.
Earlier, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that to achieve peace, the Ukrainian side should discuss the status of Crimea and possibly cede the peninsula. In addition, he expressed the view that China, which has enormous influence in the political, economic and military spheres, can help with the truce.
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