Borrell reacts to controversial statement by China’s envoy on ex-Soviet republics

The High Representative of the European Union, Josep Borrell, called “unacceptable” the statements of the Chinese ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, who questioned the sovereignty of states that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The top diplomat addressed the issue on Twitter, Ukrinform reports.

" Unacceptable remarks of the Chinese Ambassador to France questioning the sovereignty of the countries which became independent with the end of the Soviet Union in 1991. The EU can only suppose these declarations do not represent China’s official policy," Borrell wrote.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Chinese ambassador to France stated that the countries that were once republics within the USSR "do not have an effective status in international law" because, in his opinion, there is no relevant international agreement that would ratify their status.

China’s official representative also mentioned Russian-occupied Crimea, noting that in this case everything depends on the “perspective,” that "everything is not so simple," and that the peninsula "was originally Russian."