Paris, Kyiv, Baltic states dismayed after China envoy questions Ukraine sovereignty

[groundloop]

Source: Reuters

France, Ukraine and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania expressed dismay after China's ambassador in Paris questioned the sovereignty of former Soviet countries like Ukraine.

Asked about his position on whether Crimea is part of Ukraine or not, Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on French television on Friday that historically it was part of Russia and had been offered to Ukraine by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

"These ex-USSR countries don't have actual status in international law because there is no international agreement to materialize their sovereign status," Shaye added.

[snip]

"It is strange to hear an absurd version of the 'history of Crimea' from a representative of a country that is scrupulous about its thousand-year history," Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Ukrainian presidential aide, wrote on Twitter.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-baltic-states-dismayed-after-china-envoy-questions-ukraine-sovereignty-2023-04-23/

[Lovie777]

1. Ya know what that means....................

Last edited Sun Apr 23, 2023, 09:21 AM - Edit history (1)

none of the break-a-way independent countries from USSR are sovereign.

[oldsoftie]

18. And pro communist. The MAGAGOP has become PRO COMMUNIST. nt

[bronxiteforever]

2. Pro Russia is Pro China and Pro Iran

MTG and the free dumb caucus are in love with the anti freedom foreign policy of China, Russia and Iran.

[paleotn]

3. So much for Macron's China visit.

Sure China will help Russia come to the negotiation table. With a position that's totally unacceptable to Ukraine. I'm sure some Chinese official will walk this back, but the West needs to stop thinking of the Xi regime as an honest broker. They're not. They're working on their own empire.

[Tomconroy]

4. He should be expelled.

[AllaN01Bear]

5. i question china's sovereignty.

[Mister Ed]

6. Aye. Their "historical" argument is self-serving hogwash.

"Historically", the government of present-day Taiwan was the government of all of China. So really, by the PRC's own argument, the People's Republic of China doesn't actually exist.

[Geechie]

9. Good observation! nt

[scarletlib]

12. Agreed. He says this because of Taiwan & his desire to invade the country.

Historically Tibet was a free state until China invaded.

[nycbos]

7. Macron doing the French thing...

... and not standing up to fascists failed to work again?

[sarcasmo]

10. Yep, history repeating.

[dalton99a]

8. Fuck China.

[oldsoftie]

17. Yes. We MUST get critical mfg OUT of China. WHY is this not being discussed in Congress??

Seems to me it would be something the majority of BOTH parties would support.
"Friendshoring"; bringing mfg back to the US or, if thats not possible, to countries reliably friendly to the US

[brush]

26. Who is mfg?

[oldsoftie]

28. Not a who but a what. "critical manufacturing". "MFG".

[brush]

29. MFG is short for what words?

[oldsoftie]

30. manufacturing. You've never heard of that?

mfg.
mfg. written abbreviation for manufacturing , used especially in the names of companies: Minnesota Mining & Mfg

[brush]

31. Thanks. In that context, Minnesota Miniing & Mfg, it's easy to interpret...

but mfg in a sentence by itself is not so obvious to those unfamiliar with those initials... what with TFG and MTG being used quite often in the news and on this site as well.

[mn9driver]

11. This is just China keeping things consistent wrt Taiwan.

It’s obviously wrong, but logically consistent. File under authoritarian expansionist bullshit.

[PortTack]

13. ☝️☝️☝️☝️

[marble falls]

14. They have to do that, they make the same claim about Taiwan and parts of the sea claimed by the ...

... Philippines and other nations or as International waters.

[Marthe48]

15. Let's go back to a time when there were no countries

no dictators, no borders. In the meantime, going back to a convenient time in history only reinforces the desire to acquire.

[oldsoftie]

16. Our resident China apologist will be along soon;

to squarely put the blame on the US of course.
So this dipshit is also saying that NONE of the OTHER countries formerly under the USSR are legit either? Then what makes RUSSIA a country?

[dickthegrouch]

19. And his explanation for Tibet is ...

Still waiting.

[quakerboy]

20. Seems directly related to Taiwan

Russia is, im sure, happy to fully support their claims of owning Taiwan. And in return and to be consistant, the reverse can be supported.


Im can think of many reasons why it wouldnt work, but I just wish we could find a nice island somewhere that we could offer to Taiwan. Relocate the whole kit and caboodle, leave china the ground, and make the whole international issue moot.

[XorXor]

21. This is predictable and not really unexpected

Kind of makes it hard to take them serious as peace brokers if this is a glimpse into the official CCP view.

[Eugene]

22. China affirms ex-Soviet nations' sovereignty after uproar

China affirms ex-Soviet nations’ sovereignty after uproar (Associated Press)

BEIJING (AP) — The Chinese government said Monday it respects the sovereignty of former Soviet Union republics after Beijing’s ambassador to France caused an uproar in Europe by saying they aren’t sovereign nations.

The governments of former Soviet respublics Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were among those who rejected Ambassador Lu Shaye’s comment to a French broadcaster. While answering a question about the status of Crimea, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014, Lu said that there was no agreement to “solidify their status as a sovereign country.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that “China respects the sovereign status of the former Soviet countries after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.” Mao said Beijing’s position is “consistent and clear” but gave no indication whether Lu’s comment was considered incorrect.

https://apnews.com/article/china-baltics-sovereignty-crimea-russia-98f05ace20d65d5f51b34c6652a81b00

[maxsolomon]

23. He's not wrong about this part:

Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on French television on Friday that historically it was part of Russia and had been offered to Ukraine by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

1954.

[roamer65]

24. This ought to make the next SCO meeting very lively.

Fuck RuZZia and China.

[LudwigPastorius]

25. Hey, Ambassador Fuckstick, in regards to the Baltic states,...

A) Most of the world never recognized the Soviet's annexation of them to begin with, and...

B) the USSR itself relented and recognized the independence of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia in 1991.

As far as Crimea goes, your country's ambassador to the EU has flatly stated that China does not recognize Russia's attempted annexation.

This reeks of Xi trying to set up some kind of bullshit justification for invading Taiwan.

[brush]

27. Bet that ambassador is recalled soon. What an idiotic thing to say...

about the states that were formerly of the USSR, who declared independence when the USSR broke aart in '91.