The Russian Foreign Ministry dismissed claims that Beijing has “annexed” an island in the Far East
Map showing the Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island as partitioned between Russia and China in 2008. © RT
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Friday dismissed speculation that China has claimed a Russian island on the Amur River, saying that the two countries finalized their border demarcation in 2008 and are keeping to that deal.
Russia and China “adhere to the unified position that the border issue between our countries has been finally resolved,” Zakharova said, pointing to the 2005 treaty that partitioned the Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island and the 2008 final demarcation of the 4,300-kilometer border.
Zakharova was addressing stories that appeared in several media outlets, in Russia as well as in the West, claiming that the new 2023 map of China, released earlier this week, “annexed” the Russian portion of Bolshoi Ussuriysky, an island in the Amur River just west of the regional capital of Khabarovsk.
The two countries “have repeatedly confirmed the absence of mutual territorial claims,” including in the 2001 Treaty on Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, the basis for their bilateral relations, the foreign ministry spokeswoman said.
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“Resolution of the issue of the border line between Russia and China was the result of many years of efforts by both sides,” Zakharova added, calling it “a successful example of resolving border disputes for all countries of the world.”
According to the 2008 demarcation, Russia kept about two thirds of the Bolshoi Ussuriysky island, while the westernmost third was ceded to China. That part of the island is now known as Heixiazi, and belongs to the Heilongjiang province.
Some outlets, including Newsweek, have speculated that the map was proof of discord between Russia and China, pointing to the lack of official statements in Moscow about its publication. Several other governments have complained about China’s map, including Malaysia, the Philippines and India.
