High alert warning to China citizens in Ukraine but no leave order as crisis escalates
- Beijing’s embassy in Ukraine has told Chinese residents to stock up on food and water and stay connected in case they need help
- A notice from the mission stopped short of advising people to leave the country but said they should avoid unstable regions
The Chinese embassy in Ukraine issued a notice on Tuesday morning upon “major changes on the situation in eastern Ukraine”.
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“The embassy would remind Chinese citizens and companies in Ukraine to be aware of the local safety warnings and not to head to the unstable regions,” it said.
“There is a need to be more alert to safety risks and to stock up food, water and daily necessities when needed,” the embassy said, adding that China’s citizens in Ukraine should stay connected to local Chinese associations, student unions and chambers of commerce in case they need help.
The Chinese embassy did not ask its citizens to leave Ukraine, despite a number of other missions – including the US, Australia, Japan, South Korea – giving such instructions more than a week ago, while also moving their diplomats out of the country.
Putin said he would send troops and weapons to the regions which have been subject to a long-running conflict between Ukrainian forces and Moscow-backed separatists.
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Washington said it would impose sanctions if Russian troops move in, which could happen “at any time”.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that “all countries’ sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity must be safeguarded”, including Ukraine.
Wang also reiterated China’s stance that the countries involved should go back to the Minsk agreements signed in 2014 and 2015 which aimed to resolve previous conflicts in eastern Ukraine.
