2023-04-27 13:30:00
DIPLOMACY – China is in trouble. The statements of its ambassador in Paris, Lu Shaye, on the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014 and the status “not effective” countries of the former Soviet Union under international law, are causing an outcry in Europe. The Quai d’Orsay, like Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, summoned the Chinese ambassadors and Beijing quickly asserted its “respect” to the “sovereignty” of these states. Emmanuel Macron, who in mid-April still advocated Chinese mediation in the Ukrainian conflict, took over Lu Shaye from the fly.
Guest Friday, April 21, 2023 from the LCI channel, the Chinese ambassador in Paris, Lu Shaye, accustomed to making controversial statements, this time undermined the official Chinese position on the war in Ukraine. Asked if Crimea was still Ukrainian land under international law, the diplomat replied, with a nervous laugh, that “it depends on how to perceive this problem”.
Anxious, visibly, not to contradict the official Chinese account of Taiwan’s historical affiliation with China, on which he was questioned a few minutes earlier, he mentions “the story” of Crimea, “which was at the very beginning to Russia”. “Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine during the Soviet period”, he added, before being cut and revived by journalist Darius Rochebin.
Forced to answer the question, Lu Shaye drives the point home. “According to international law, even these countries of the former Soviet Union do not have an effective status because there are no international agreements which give concrete form to their status as sovereign countries (…) We must not quibble about this kind of problem. The most important thing is to achieve a ceasefire (…) There are problems of ins and outs”he explained.
Chinese ambassadors summoned, Beijing calms things down
Reactions, particularly from Europe, to this declaration were not long in coming. The countries concerned, the Baltics in particular, quickly demanded explanations from China. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania expressed their irritation at comments “totally unacceptable” of the Chinese Ambassador to France. “First of all, it’s totally unacceptable,” said the Lithuanian Gabrielius Landsbergis. “We are not post-Soviet countries, we are countries that were illegally occupied by the Soviet Union.” He pointed to the parallel between Lu Shaye’s comments and the official Russian position on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. “These are stories we hear from Moscow. And now they are broadcast by another country which is, in our view, an ally of Moscow in many cases – if not militarily, at least politically.” he added.
Estonia reacted through the voice of its foreign minister, demanding an explanation from Beijing. His Latvian counterpart, Edgars Rinkēvičs asked for a “full retraction”. The three Baltic states have announced their intention to summon the Chinese ambassadors on Monday (April 24) to “seek clarification”. France followed suit.
The Quai d’Orsay summoned the diplomat, via the office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, to call him “to use his public speech in such a way as to be in conformity with the official positions of his country”. “As regards Ukraine more particularly, it was internationally recognized within its borders, including Crimea, by the entire international community, including China, upon the fall of the USSR as a new member state of the United Nations. China has also recognized the validity of the Budapest memorandum of December 4, 1994, by publishing on the same day a national declaration providing Ukraine with security guarantees”, lit-on.
The statement lamented “the unacceptable nature of calling into question respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all States, fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter, which is binding on all”.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also expressed its “consternation”, express sa “full solidarity with all of our allies and concerned partners, who have won a long-awaited independence after decades of oppression”. Emmanuel Macron also reacted in Ostend, Belgium, during his presence at the North Sea Summit, condemning Lu Shaye’s remarks. “It is not the place of a diplomat to hold this type of language”, he said, in turn expressing his “full solidarity with the countries that have been attacked in the reading of their history and their borders”.
Joseph Borrelthe head of European diplomacy, also condemned the remarks of the Chinese ambassador and expressed his solidarity with the Baltic countries.
These cascading reactions prompted China to react to dissociate itself from its ambassador. Beijing reaffirmed, through Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, its “respect” au “sovereign statehood” countries of the former USSR. As for the Chinese embassy in France, a communiqué clarified that the ambassador’s remarks were not a “political statement, but the expression of personal opinions during a televised debate” and that they”should not be over-interpreted”.
“China is the victim”
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, China has repeatedly called for a ceasefire and proposed a peace plan. A call reiterated Friday by its ambassador in Paris on the set of LCI. Beijing, which has never expressed its support for Russia, has also not condemned Moscow, which has always abstained in votes at the UN General Assembly.
Lu Shaye’s declarations, which are perfectly in line with the official Russian position, thus embarrass Beijing. For several weeks, China has been called upon to play a mediating role in the war in Ukraine. During his visit, the head of the Elysée welcomed the “will” of this country ofbuild a path to peace” “China, precisely on the strength of its close relationship with Russia, which has been reaffirmed in recent days, can play a major role”had estimated Macron.
“China has precisely proposed a peace plan (…) It is indeed a question of a desire to have a responsibility and to try to build a path towards peace”, he added. It was during his visit that the French President called on the European Union (EU) not to be “follower” of Washington on the question of Taiwan. This appeal provoked an outcry in Europe and the United States, after being interpreted as a “temptation” to Xi Jinping “to attack Taiwan”. China also launched military exercises off Taiwan as soon as Macron left.
During his interview on LCI, the Chinese ambassador in Paris, Lu Shaye, reiterated the official Chinese position. He thus asserted that “it is China that is the victim of secessionists”. “It is the Chinese people who decide the fate of Taiwan, which has been an integral part of Chinese territory since antiquity (…) Both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to the same and unique China. Such is the story, the very one on which he based himself to express his “personal opinion” on Crimea and the countries of the former Soviet Union.
“Taiwan’s return to China is a component of the post-war international order…To push Taiwan towards independence is to sabotage the post-war order… If this goal of reuniting the homeland cannot be achieved by peaceful means, other means can be resorted to.” threatened Lu Shaye.
This is not the first time the diplomat has made controversial remarks. In April 2020he accused the nursing staff of nursing homes of having “abandoned at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in France their posts overnight (…) leaving their residents to die of hunger and disease”. Barely a year later, on March 2021he criticizes French researcher Antoine Bondaz by calling him a “little punch” and of “mad hyena”.
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