PARIS: China’s ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, has been criticised by Paris and the European Union (EU) after questioning the sovereignty of post-Soviet nations, including Ukraine and members of the EU.
Speaking on France’s LCI news channel, Lu suggested that countries emerging after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 “do not have effective status as per international law because there is not an international agreement confirming their status as sovereign countries.”
China’s ambassador casts doubt on status of Crimea
The ambassador also cast doubt on the status of Crimea, which was occupied by Russia in 2014. Lu’s comments have been branded “unacceptable” by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, and Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhaylo Podolyak stated that the status of post-Soviet countries was “enshrined in international law”.
The foreign ministers of Baltic countries Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, also former Soviet republics, condemned Lu’s remarks. Lu is part of a new group of outspoken Chinese diplomats known as “wolf warriors”.
The controversy is embarrassing for French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently visited Beijing to encourage China to put pressure on Russia to end its invasion of Ukraine.
