China, responding
to parallels being drawn between the Ukraine crisis and the situation in Taiwan,
said Taiwan is an inalienable part of its territory. “This is an indisputable historical
and legal fact. The one-China principle is a universally-recognized norm in
international relations,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin, said
in a statement.

Beijing’s response
comes at a time Russian forces are said to have positioned themselves in the
two separatist regions – Donetsk and Lugansk — whose independence Moscow
recognised earlier this week.

Also Read | Why growing fondness between China, Russia has Taiwan jittery

Vladimir Putin has
sought and obtained permission from the Russian Parliament to send troops
abroad. Western nations say the invasion of Ukraine has begun and several
nations have imposed sanctions on Russia.

While parallels
between Ukraine and Taiwan may be overstated, the Ukraine-Taiwan question
featured in a big way when Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the
inaugural ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.

The Games faced
diplomatic boycott of several western nations, and in its midst, Russia and
China got cosy. Political observers wondered out loud whether iron curtains
were being drawn.   

In course of the China-Russia
summit, Beijing vehemently opposed the actions of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty
Organization). Russia responded in kind and said democratically-governed Taiwan
is a part of China.

Tensions in the
Crimean Peninsula have been running high for some time. While Moscow has
dispatched troops to the rebel regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, Vladimir Putin
said Wednesday that Moscow was ready to look for “diplomatic solutions”.

“Our country is
always open for direct and honest dialogue, for the search for diplomatic
solutions to the most complex problems,” Putin said.

Meanwhile, the
Ukrainian military said Wednesday that one soldier was killed and six injured due
to shelling from pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. The military said
they have recorded 96 incidents of shelling by separatists in the last 24
hours, according to a Reuters report.