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China has repeatedly denied the involvement of its citizens in the Russia-Ukraine war, to counter which Kyiv flouted the international humanitarian law and exposed the identities of POWs.
Chinese prisoners of war in Ukraine (AFP Image)
In a brazen violation of international law, Ukraine paraded the Chinese prisoners of war and exposed them to the media interaction, in a move which could possibly irk Beijing, which has earlier denied the involvement of its nationals in the Ukraine war.
Ukraine’s move comes as Donald Trump’s support has been shrinking and Russia is upping its ante in the three-year-long war that sees no end at the moment. China has time and again denied the involvement of its citizens in fighting with the Russians against Ukraine. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had recently said that there are 155 Chinese citizens who were fighting against Ukraine on its soil, out of whom two were held in eastern Donetsk. China had refuted the claims.
With his permission, the Ukrainian military paraded them and revealed their identities as POWs. According to international humanitarian law, revealing the identities of prisoners of war and exposing them in front of news cameras is a violation of the law. However, Zelenskyy gave a go-ahead to this open defiance of the law, to counter China’s claims that none of its nationals were involved in the Russia-Ukraine war.
The Chinese POWs were made to sit in front of the media. The International Committee of the Red Cross protects the prisoners of war and also bars a country from revealing them in front of the media.
Zelenskyy had last week said that Russia was dragging China, which has been silently backing Moscow in the conflict, into the war. He also lashed out at Beijing for allowing the recruitment of its citizens into the Russian army.
More to follow…
