Chinese Ambassador supports Ukraine's desire to de-occupy Crimea

Chinese Ambassador to the European Union Fu Qiong said that he does not rule out Beijing's support for Ukraine's desire to restore its territorial integrity by returning to the 1991 borders.

Fu said this in an interview with several media outlets, including Al Jazeera.

When the Chinese diplomat was asked about supporting Ukraine's goals, in particular the return of the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia, he replied: "I see no reason why not."

"We respect the territorial integrity of all countries. That's why when China established relations with the former Soviet Union, we agreed on that. But, as I said, these are historical issues that need to be discussed and resolved by Russia and Ukraine, and that's what we are in favor of," Fu said.

This is not the first such comment by the Chinese ambassador to the EU, AL Jazeera notes. In April, in an interview with The New York Times, he said that China does not recognize Russia's efforts to annex Ukrainian territories, including Crimea and Donbas.

While other Chinese officials and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs usually refrain from making such comments, Fu emphasized in his latest interview that China's position on Ukraine "has been very clear."

"We are in favor of peace and believe it is important to achieve peace as soon as possible by resolving differences at the negotiating table," he said.

Cooperation between Moscow and Beijing has strengthened since Russia decided to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

China refused to criticize Moscow's actions, instead accusing the United States and NATO of provoking the Kremlin, and criticized sanctions against Russia. Russia, in turn, strongly supported China amid tensions with the United States over Taiwan.

Author - Olena Madiak, 27/06/2023