Anger in Europe after Chinese envoy to France says ex-Soviet states not sovereign

European states reacted with fury to remarks by China’s top envoy to France questioning the independence of ex-Soviet states, tainting the nation’s push to court leaders in the region and burnish its credentials to broker peace after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Ambassador Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on Friday on French network LCI that some “ex-Soviet Union countries” don’t have effective status under international law.

Asked by Swiss journalist Darius Rochebin whether Crimea is Ukrainian territory, Lu said, “It depends on how you perceive the problem . . . . It’s not that simple.”