Baltics condemn China envoy’s stance on ex-Soviet nations

Baltics condemn China envoy’s stance on ex-Soviet nations

23 Apr    AP, Finance News, PMN Business

Article content

HELSINKI (AP) — The three Baltic states have strongly condemned comments by China’s envoy to France, who appeared to suggest in a recent French television interview that former Soviet republics aren’t sovereign nations.

The foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in separate announcements late Saturday deemed statements by Lu Shaye, China’s ambassador to France, as unacceptable.

Article content

In a recent interview with the French news channel LCI, he was asked if he thought that the Crimean Peninsula belongs to Ukraine. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move that most of the world denounced as illegal.

Advertisement 2

Article content

“That depends … on how one perceives this problem,” the envoy told the broadcaster. “There’s the history. Crimea was at the beginning Russian, no? It was (Soviet leader Nikita) Khrushchev who gave Crimea to Ukraine in the era of the Soviet Union.”

See also  The Best Crypto Slot Games Available Online

When the channel’s presenter noted that according to international law, Crimea is part of Ukraine, the Chinese ambassador drew a parallel to the former Soviet republics — including the three Baltic nations — that broke free after the USSR collapsed in 1991.

“With regards to international law, even these ex-Soviet Union countries, they do not, they do not have the status — how to say it? — that’s effective in international law, because there is no international agreement to solidify their status as a sovereign country,” he said.

Article content

Advertisement 3

Story continues below

Article content

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis tweeted that “If anyone is still wondering why the Baltic States don’t trust China to ‘broker peace in Ukraine,’ here’s a Chinese ambassador arguing that Crimea is Russian and our countries’ borders have no legal basis.”

His Estonian counterpart, Margus Tsahkna, said Chinese ambassador’s comments were “false and a misinterpretation of history,” while Latvian Foreign Minister Edgar Rinkevics said that the statements were “completely unacceptable.”

Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius would each summon China’s ambassador or representative for an explanation of the envoy’s comments, the three Baltic countries said. European Union and NATO members Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania regained their independence in 1991 amid the fall of the Soviet Union after nearly five decades of Moscow’s rule.

Advertisement 4

Story continues below

Article content

In a separate statement, France’s Foreign Ministry expressed concern about the ambassador’s comments about ex-Soviet states and said: “It’s for China to say whether these comments reflect its position, which we hope is not the case.”

See also  The Wall Street Journal: WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann sues SoftBank over collapse of $3 billion deal

The French ministry said these countries gained independence “after decades of oppression” and that in the specific case of Ukraine, “the entirety of the international community, including China,” recognized its borders, including Crimea, when it declared independence in 1991.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia, which is China’s ally, has said several times that he doesn’t recognize the sovereignty of Ukraine. The Kremlin also has made clear that it perceives the independence of the Baltic states and their active role in NATO and the EU as threats to Russia’s security.

——

John Leicester contributed to this report from Paris.

Comments

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.

Join the Conversation

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *