. Military Space News .
SUPERPOWERS
Chinese media echoes Russia on Ukraine war
By Beiyi SEOW
Beijing (AFP) March 14, 2022

As Western sanctions on Moscow mount following its invasion of Ukraine, Chinese media tells a story to domestic readers that avoids blaming Russia and portrays sympathy for President Vladimir Putin's perspective.

Beijing has refused to support nor condemn its close ally Moscow, while blaming the United States and NATO's "eastward expansion" for worsening tensions.

It is a view that reverberates across state newspapers and television -- as well as social media -- in China's tightly controlled news environment.

When Putin announced an assault on Ukraine on February 24, China's official Xinhua news agency maintained it was a "military operation" and Moscow had "no intent" of occupying Ukrainian territory.

Days later, state broadcaster CCTV echoed a false Russian claim that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had left Kyiv -- a story quickly repeated by other domestic outlets.

Some Chinese reports also state that there has been a surge of "neo-Nazi" ideology among the Ukrainian army and people, a claim supported by Putin.

A directive to a state-affiliated outlet, circulating online last month, appeared to instruct that posts unfavourable to Russia or containing pro-Western content should not be published.

State media reports on Ukraine avoid terms like "invasion", instead describing the situation as a "conflict" or "fighting".

"This is not a struggle to find the right message," Justyna Szczudlik, China analyst at the Polish Institute of International Affairs, told AFP.

"China purposely uses very vague language," she added, noting that this was to reduce diplomatic risks in its relations with Western countries.

Officials, too, have rebuffed the term "invasion" when questioned by foreign journalists -- accusing them of biased reporting -- while giving the contradictory statements that China respects every country's sovereignty but won't take sides.

- Censorship and nationalism -

A fierce condemnation of war at the opening of the Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing was not translated on Chinese TV.

And rights holders of the English Premier League did not air matches a weekend earlier in March, knowing players were expected to show solidarity with Ukraine.

Under the barrage of China's support, netizens have been showing sympathy for Russia.

Pro-Putin hashtags have been allowed to proliferate on China's Twitter-like Weibo, along with admiring comments about how daring he is and calls for Ukrainians to surrender.

In contrast, articles about state media embracing Russian propaganda were removed as "false information".

"As with every country, China... considers its own security interests above all else," said Richard Ghiasy, an expert at the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies.

"In that security calculation, stable and predictable ties with Russia are absolutely pivotal," he added.

Media outlets have also started explicitly pushing Russian conspiracy theories.

"There is no smoke without fire," state-run tabloid Global Times wrote while repeating Russian claims that US-funded biological labs in Ukraine were experimenting with bat coronaviruses.

It didn't report comments from Washington that the allegations were "outright lies" that have been debunked.

- 'Exclusive' access -

Days before the invasion, Putin announced that Moscow recognised the independence of separatist regions Donetsk and Lugansk in eastern Ukraine and later justified the assault as a defence of the self-proclaimed republics.

Chinese-language Phoenix TV showed its Russia correspondent interviewing an officer about the progress of Russia's "demilitarisation" operation.

This media line persists despite official statements stressing the need to protect the "territorial integrity of all countries".

As millions of people streamed out of war-torn Ukraine into European countries seeking safety, China published an "exclusive interview" with a rebel leader in Donetsk.

In the interview with state-run CGTN, Denis Pushilin was seen talking about "liberated areas" and claimed that the "vast majority of citizens want to be as close to Russia as possible".

Beijing has also tried to portray itself as the measured middle-voice that could help with peace efforts.

China has upheld an "independent policy on Ukraine issue (and) develops ties with all sides to inject stability into the world," the Global Times said Friday.

But Ghiasy believes China sees the invasion as an act of "defence" against an encroaching NATO that would undermine Russian security interests.

"It has taken a clear stance and tinkers little with that," he said.

bys/rox/dva

Weibo


Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


SUPERPOWERS
Strike in Donbas wounds 30, Russia accused of chemical attacks
Kyiv (AFP) March 13, 2022
Ukrainian officials accused Russia at the weekend of using phosphorus chemical bombs in the eastern Donbas region, while a separate air strike on a monastery sheltering civilians wounded 30. International law prohibits the use of white phosphorus shells in heavily populated civilian areas but allows them in open spaces to be used as cover for troops. Oleksi Biloshytsky, head of police in Popasna, around 100 kilometres (60 miles) west of Lugansk city, said late on Saturday that Russian forces had ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

SUPERPOWERS
US sends two Patriot missile batteries to Poland: Pentagon

Saudi, Lockheed Martin in missile defence deal

Lockheed Martin selects mission payload providers for missile warning satellite system

SBIRS GEO-5 operationally accepted after exceeding on-orbit testing expectations

SUPERPOWERS
Lviv-area base struck by missiles launched from Russia: US official

UK readies more missiles for Ukraine to resist Russians

On edge of war: Russian missiles chink away at Kyiv's southern flank

Britain, France strike deal to develop new missiles

SUPERPOWERS
Red Cat Holdings Selected by U.S. Army for Short Range Reconnaissance Tranche 2 Drone Program

Northrop Grumman completes ferry flight of Japan's RQ-4B Global Hawk

Croatia PM urges closer NATO cooperation after military drone crash

'Big threat': air defences take centre stage at Saudi arms show

SUPERPOWERS
Russian space agency says it will hold up British-owned OneWeb's launch

Space Development Agency awards 126 satellites to Build Tranche 1 Transport Layer

Lockheed Martin to deliver 42 smallsats for SDA's Transport Layer

Space Micro lands Space Development Agency contract for optical communications

SUPERPOWERS
AFRL'S PNT AgilePod achieves flight test objectives

SUPERPOWERS
France denies breaching sanctions with Russia arms sales

Europe new 'hotspot' for arms imports: report

Australia to boost defence force by nearly a third

Sweden to raise military spending over Ukraine war

SUPERPOWERS
Chinese media echoes Russia on Ukraine war

Finnish support for joining NATO hits record 62%: poll

Major NATO manoeuvres kick off in Norway

Unease and stoicism on Finland's Russian border

SUPERPOWERS
Atom by atom: building precise smaller nanoparticles with templates

Ring my string: Building silicon nano-strings

Nanotube films open up new prospects for electronics

Using the universe's coldest material to measure the world's tiniest magnetic fields









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.