Chinese historian Fu on Ukraine invasion

 I think this, from an open letter by Chinese historian of World War I Fu Guoqi (and signed by four other Chinese historians), is right on. (Quoted in the Guardian). But we should also realize that World War I could have been avoided only if rational people on both sides were willing to really try to find a feasible offramp for belligerence. 

"What will this war lead to? Will it lead to a large-scale world war?" the historians asked. "Great catastrophes in history often started with local conflicts. We strongly opposed Russia's war against Ukraine. Russia's invasion of a sovereign state by force … is a violation of the norms of international relations based on the United Nations charter and a breach of the existing international security system."

 

In public, China opposes any act that violates territorial integrity. China's foreign minister, Wang Yi, articulated this position again in a late-night post published on his ministry's website on Friday. But over the course of the past week, as civilians were killed and western sanctions intensified, Beijing continued to echo Putin's argument that Moscow's action is a response to Nato's eastward expansion.
"Do they genuinely believe in that? Is it worth [it] for China to undermine its own credibility to defend the indefensible? I'm afraid they were fooled by Putin," Xu said, emphasising that he and his colleagues wrote this letter because they love the country, and they do not wish a potential worldwide tragedy to stall China's future.

 

"This is simply a black and white matter," he continued. "This is an invasion. As the Chinese saying goes: you cannot call a deer a horse. As Chinese historians, we do not wish to see China being dragged into something that will fundamentally harm the current world order. For the love of mankind, world peace and development, we should make this clear."