News of a Chinese business delegation visiting Russian-occupied Crimea and speaking with local officials about major investments in tourism and recreation on March 11 was a shock for many.
State-controlled Russian-media, pro-Kremlin Ukrainian news websites, and even some Ukrainian lawmakers presented this as China’s revenge against Ukraine for terminating the sale of aircraft manufacturer Motor Sich and another step to the recognition of Russia’s sovereignty over Crimea.
Yet the so-called delegates were just small-scale entrepreneurs pulled from Moscow’s wholesale street markets, Latvia-based Russian media outlet Meduza reported on March 24.
Indeed, open databases had almost no information on the reported members of the “Chinese business delegation” and the organizations and businesses they represented. None of China’s media outlets seemed to have any idea about the visit.
Crimea’s occupying authorities reported that the Chinese delegation consisted of “Chen Shanwen, deputy chairman with the Association of Russian-Chinese Friendship, Zhao Kai, the director-general of Beijing-based import-export trade company Kai Sheng, and Chen Yung, the board chairman of public company Hao Lang.”
But the official Chinese company registry has no information on a Beijing import-export trade company that’s headed by Zhao Kai, according to Meduza.
Furthermore, the Hao Lang company registered in the city of Ruian in Zhejiang province, is a small business that manufactures clothes and sells footwear. It is co-owned by Chen Yung and Chen Shanwen, both of whom possess a 33% share.
Chen Shanwen also represents his home province of Zhejiang in the Chinese Association to promote peaceful reunification in Russia, an organization working with the Chinese diaspora in Russia. The association did not respond to Meduza’s questions about whether Chen was authorized to represent it in Crimea.
“In reality, all three delegates in Crimea have lived in Moscow for many years and run businesses there,” Meduza reported.
“Members of the Chinese business community in Moscow recognized their acquaintance in the photos and videos of the Crimean visit. Chen Shanwen, Chen Yung, Zhao Kai… are closely tied, they sell consumer goods at the marketplaces of Moskva and Sadovod (in the Russian capital).”
The Crimean visit had been barely noticed by Russian media until March 14, when Vadym Rabinovych, a notorious pro-Kremlin lawmaker in Ukraine’s parliament, presented it as “China’s backlash against Ukraine’s stance regarding Motor Sich.”
The Crimean visit took place amid tension between Ukraine and China. On March 11, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council decided to nationalize Motor Sich to prevent Chinese businesses from being able to complete their acquisition of it. The United States fiercely opposed the sale, which has been frozen by Ukrainian authorities since 2017.
“China has been staying neutral on Crimea for a long time,” Rabinovych wrote on his Facebook page. “And it has suddenly changed its mind and sent a…delegation to ‘facilitate the partnership.’”
“The Chinese businessmen… have reached an agreement to establish relations with local enterprises, marked an action plan with regards to tourism and the health rehabilitation of Chinese nationals. They are also ready to invest a lot into the recreation business.”
When asked to comment on Ukraine’s strong reaction to the visit, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on March 15 defended Chinese businesses’ presence in the Russian-occupied zone.
“Chinese companies maintain contacts with Crimea and cooperate with it in compliance with market principles,” the official said. “One must not politicize this commercial cooperation.”
