On February 28, the Chinese Ambassador (大使 dà shǐ) to Ukraine, 范先荣 (Fàn Xiānróng), published a video, in which he addressed the Chinese citizens living in Ukraine (乌克兰 wū kè lán). Fan wished to refute the rumors that the Chinese embassy had evacuated the capital. So he addressed his fellow citizens on camera, assuring them the embassy is still here to help them, and promised:

中国大使还在基辅。中国大使永远不可能抛下自己的同胞不管。。。祖国就在身后，使馆就在身后，共同努力战胜目前暂时的困难。

Zhōng guó dà shǐ hái zài jī fǔ. Zhōng guó dà shǐ yǒng yuǎn bù kě néng pāo xià zì jǐ de tóng bāo bù guǎn… Zǔ guó jiù zài shēn hòu, shǐ guǎn jiù zài shēn hòu, gong tóng nǔ lì zhàn shèng mù qián zhàn shí de kùn nán.

The Chinese ambassador is still in Kyiv. The Chinese ambassador can never leave his compatriots alone… The motherland is behind and the embassy is behind, working together to overcome the current temporary difficulties.

The ambassador ended the video with the common Chinese phrase of encouragement: 同胞们加油 (tóng bāo men jiā yóu.). The noun he used in his message – 同胞 tóng bāo – means compatriot, fellow citizen, in which the ambassador refers to all the Chinese people (华人 huá rén) living these days in Ukraine. According to the Chinese media there about 6,000 Chinese in Ukraine. But other reporters (such as this and this) suggest the updated statistics are bigger, talking about tens of thousands of Chinese living in Ukraine. Reportedly, they, too, wish to evacuate the war-torn country and flee to a safe place.

由于乌克兰目前的局势太危险，中国公民想离开。事前很多华侨没撤了，现在被困在战事中。

Yóu yú wū kè lán mù qián de jú shì tài wéi xiǎn, zhōng guó gong mín xiǎng lí kāi. Shì qián hěn duō huá qiáo méi chè le, xiàn zài bèi kùn zài zhàn shì zhōng.

The current situation in Ukraine is too dangerous, and the Chinese citizens wish to leave. Many overseas Chinese were not evacuated beforehand and are now trapped in the war.

The verb in the example above – 撤 (chè) means to withdraw, to take away. It appears in several phrases meaning to withdraw. All appear frequently in the news referring the situation in Ukraine.

For example:

中国开始从乌克兰撤离被困的公民。

Zhōng guó kāi shǐ cóng wū kè lán chè lí bèi kùn de gong mín.

China begins evacuating citizens trapped in Ukraine.

三千中国人已撤出乌克兰东部城市。

Sān qiān zhōng guó rén yǐ chè chū wū kè lán dōng bù chéng shì.

Three thousand Chinese have already withdrawn from cities in eastern Ukraine.

在乌克兰的中国留学生抱怨其他国家是半个月前就撤走了。

Zài wū kè lán de zhōng guó liú xué shēng bào yuàn qí tā guó jiā shì bàn gè yuè qián jiù chè zǒu le.

Chinese students in Ukraine complained that other countries had withdrawn half a month ago.

Clearly, the situation in Ukraine is affecting people from all over the world, including China.

 

Text vocabulary

乌克兰 wū kè lán = Ukraine

基辅 jī fǔ = Kyiv

大使 dà shǐ = ambassador

华人 huá rén = Chinese people

华侨 huá qiáo = overseas Chinese

同胞 tóng bāo = compatriot

撤 chè = to withdraw, to take away

  好好学习，天天向上！

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