Jun 12, 2024
ALEXANDER RYUMIN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Ultranationalist Russian media personality Sergey Mardan has sparked anger on Chinese social media with his on-air remark that Russia must subdue its neighbors.
The Saturday Mardan host said that “Russia is an empire, and an empire can only be a military state. And a military state must fight.”
“It [Russia] must make the surrounding barbarians submit or be pacified,” he said, warning the country would itself “be pacified…if we aren’t strong enough economically, militarily, politically, and demographically.” Mardan has previously expressed nostalgia for czarist Russia, whose territory encompassed Ukraine and several other modern states.
“A funny story: Russian propaganda TV host Mardan claimed, ‘Russia is a military empire. It always expands and subjugates her neighbors,'” European Resilience Initiative Center founder Sergej Sumlenny wrote in his translation of the comment on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday. “He did not think that Chinese listened, translated, and published this in China.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, declared a “no-limits partnership” shortly before the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Since then, Moscow has increasingly relied on trade with China, particularly its demand for oil and natural gas, to keep the Russian economy afloat amid heavy international sanctions.
Beijing maintains it is neutral regarding the conflict but has largely censored criticism of the war on Chinese social media.
Mardan’s comments surfaced on China’s X-like social media platform Weibo and caused a stir, with some netizens taking offense.
“Without China’s support, Russia would have collapsed in this war,” one wrote.
“Russia has no friends. Oh—Iran and North Korea,” another quipped.
Another Weibo user said the comment “speaks to the heart of Russians, who basically see themselves as Europeans and are looking down on Asians.”
“Tsarist Russia and the USSR were really unfriendly [toward China], and the decaying Russia is fine, I guess,” another said.
Other commenters struck a more realist tone on Beijing-Moscow ties.
“It’s normal for great powers to take precautions against each other,” one wrote.
“Does anyone in power really believe China and Russia have been friends for generations? We just have the same [national] interests now,” said another.
Yun Sun, the director of the Stimson Center’s China Program, suggested the
limited circulation of Mardan’s translated comment, with the top post only garnering 636 comments as of time of writing, could suggest censors have gotten to many of them.
Another indicator of this could be the large proportion of moderate comments. “So it’s either been ‘cleaned’ by the government or something else,” she said.
Newsweek reached out with written requests for comment to the Russian Foreign Ministry and Chinese Embassy in Russia.
Mardan is known for his bellicose remarks, prompting a group of human rights organizations to file a submission to the International Criminal Court over his alleged incitement to violence toward Ukrainians.
As the war in Ukraine approached its two-year anniversary in February, the TV personality characterized the Russian people as “aggressors” and “cruel,” saying they “always come back for what’s theirs.”
https://www.newsweek.com/chinese-outraged-putin-ally-vows-subjugate-russia-neighbors-1911648
Ooops. Looks like the video from Mardan the other day did raise some chinese eyebrows.
“Without China’s support, Russia would have collapsed in this war,”
So true. And this makes Mardan’s statement all the more baffling. Surely, every ruskie knows that mafia land is china’s little doormat.
Another indicator of this could be the large proportion of moderate comments. “So it’s either been ‘cleaned’ by the government or something else,” she said.
Why would the Chinese government censor comments like this? Are they trying to impress on the world that China and mafia land are best buddies? When in reality they have more in common with Stalin and Hitler.
It doesn’t surprise me, foccuser. On the outside, china wants the relationship with mafia land to look clean and unstained. Internally, things most likely look different … especially now.
I think you’re right, they are trying to portray they’re best buddies, but the world understands evil does not share power. There will come a day either China or Russia will have to turn from evil or be conjugated by the other. My guess is it would be Russia to be conjugated unless a Red Square Maidan saves them from the abyss.
It will be a toss-up who will stab who in the back first. The Chinks only support Russia because of the US. If the war turns badly for the orcs, China will soon drop their support.
“Within the web of connective tissue currently binding Sino-Russian energy cooperation, the financial transactions themselves are benefiting China in a lopsided manner.”
https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Military-Review/English-Edition-Archives/November-December-2021/Murray-Russias-China-Gamble/
This report is from 2021. Things between the two trash countries have NOT gotten any better for mafia land since then, but worsened horribly. I think it’s china that is stabbing mafia land in the back already … in slow motion. The mafiosi just might not fully realize this yet.
I used to have high hopes for a Red Square Maidan. Not anymore, Red. The ruskie people just don’t have the courage nor the willpower. They are happy top be slaves, and at best, everyone around them should also be slaves.
Well, I guess Xi and his minions don’t necessarily disagree with the general idea behind Mardan’s statement. Only with the detail that they see Russia as a mediocre regional power and their own, much bigger country as the mighty Empire that subjugates grandstanding but minor regimes like Russia. 😈
Maybe we’ll never know. Xi, unlike Biden, doesn’t hand over secrets or strategies to everyone.