Crimea Has Always Belonged to Russia, Says Chinese Ambassador

Crimea has always belonged to Russia, and the former Soviet Union countries have "no effective status in international law." Ukraine and the Baltic states are outraged by the Chinese ambassador’s remarks in Paris.

In an interview with the French LCI television channel, Chinese Ambassador Liu Shao said that the states formed after the collapse of the Soviet Union "have no effective status in global law, as there is no international agreement that clarifies their status as sovereign states."

The Chinese ambassador also expressed his position on Crimea, noting to French journalists that everyone perceives the issue differently, but the peninsula “has originally belonged to Russia.” He added that during the Soviet era, “Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine.”

The interview has received negative reactions from representatives of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Ukraine. The Ukrainian ambassador to France stated that Liu Shao “has issues with geography,” while the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the Chinese ambassador’s stance as “incomprehensible.”