Chinese ambassador to France’s remarks on Crimea and sovereignty sparked discontent in Baltic countries and Ukraine
Chinese Ambassador to France Liu Shaye said the status of post-Soviet countries in international law is still unclear and that Crimea “was originally Russian”. Such remarks caused discontent in the Baltic countries. In turn, Latvia and Estonia summoned Chinese diplomats, and in Kiev they said that such talk contradicts Beijing’s position.
In an interview with French television channel LCI, Chaillet said that post-Soviet countries do not have an effective status in international law that would characterize them as sovereign countries. Regarding Crimea, he said “it depends on how you perceive the problem”. According to him, the peninsula “originally belonged to Russia”, and in Soviet times Nikita Khrushchev handed it over to Ukraine.
Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics called such remarks by the Chinese ambassador in Paris unacceptable. Rinkevich said the Foreign Ministry is awaiting Beijing’s official response to Shaye’s words. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhna called the position of the Chinese ambassador to France “incomprehensible”.
Ukraine’s Ambassador to France Vadim Omelchenko says Chaillet has “obvious problems with geography” or his words contradict China’s official position on establishing peace in Ukraine based on law international community and the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
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