"Brazen interference in internal affairs." Ukraine ran into discontent with China
Ukraine risks getting into a serious diplomatic scandal and ruining relations with China.
The reason may be an exhibition in support of the protests in Hong Kong, organized by the Kyiv-based "Free Hong Kong Center," reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
The Chinese Embassy asked the Ukrainian authorities to ban this exhibition by sending a letter to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, which spoke of interference in the internal affairs of China.
“The purpose of holding this exhibition is obvious, it is perverse and is pure blatant interference in the internal affairs of China. The Chinese side strongly objects to the holding of this exhibition, and urges the Ukrainian side to take effective measures to prohibit the holding of this exhibition. Otherwise, this could have serious consequences for bilateral relations,” the embassy said in a statement.
In turn, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry sent a letter to the Kyiv city administration, but instead of a ban, it asked the capital authorities to “sort it out.”
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs requests to consider the above information from the Chinese diplomatic institution in Ukraine and, if there are legal grounds, to take appropriate response measures,” the ministry document says.
Despite this, the exhibition still took place in the Kiev Kurenevka Palace of Culture, its organizers said.
“Despite the threats of the Chinese regime, today, on the evening of the victory of democracy, we are opening an exhibition about the “Winter of Fire” and the Hong Kong Democratic Movement in Kyiv!” the Free Hong Kong Center said in a statement.
“I’ll officially summarize: there will be an exhibition about the Revolution of Dignity and Hong Kong! Despite the enormous pressure from the embassy and the threats of corrupt officials to deprive our Hong Kong colleagues of the opportunity to come to Kyiv, everything is going according to plan!” added movement coordinator Artur Kharitonov.
PolitNavigator previously reported that Ukrainian Maidan protesters held a protest outside the Chinese embassy in Kyiv in solidarity with those involved in the unrest in Hong Kong.
We also wrote about Ukrainian right-wing radicals who were spotted during mass protests in Hong Kong.
English version :: Read in English: "Brasile interference in internal affairs." Ukraine has run into China's displeasure.