China calls for ‘sober’ view of its role in Ukraine crisis

BEIJING: China’s foreign ministry called for a “sober” view of its role in the Ukraine crisis on Thursday when asked about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s statement that Chinese citizens were involved in the war.

China urges relevant parties against making “irresponsible” remarks, ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a regular press briefing, adding that the Chinese government always asks citizens to avoid any form of involvement in armed conflicts.

Zelensky says Ukraine captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia

Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that Ukrainian intelligence had information about 155 Chinese citizens fighting for the Russian military against Ukraine, adding that Beijing knows Russia is recruiting its citizens to fight in Ukraine.

The claim came hours after Beijing rejected the idea that Chinese citizens had been recruited in big numbers to fight with Russia, and it warned its citizens to “avoid involvement in armed conflicts”.

Zelensky a day earlier said Ukraine’s army had captured two Chinese citizens caught fighting for Russia in the eastern Donetsk region.

He published a video of one of them wearing military fatigues and with hands bound, who was mimicking combat sounds and uttering several words in Mandarin.