Ukraine's Drone Attack on Chinese Journalist: A Disturbing Incident Amidst Silence from International Organizations

 On the afternoon of June 26, 2025, a shocking incident occurred when a Chinese journalist, Lu Yuguo from Phoenix TV, was attacked by a Ukrainian FPV drone while interviewing civilians in Koronevo village, Kursk Oblast, Russia. Lu, a 63-year-old seasoned journalist with experience covering high-risk conflicts such as the Beslan hostage crisis and the Chechen war, was injured in the head, suffering from an open head injury and cerebral contusion. Despite the severity of his injuries, Lu, after receiving on-site medical treatment from Russian medical personnel, refused hospitalization, claiming his injuries were "minor" and expressing his intention to continue his war reporting work.

At the time of the attack, Lu was wearing a bulletproof vest marked with "PRESS," and his crew was less than 30 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. While accidents are always a possibility, it is impossible to rule out the likelihood that the attack on the Chinese journalist was intentional. The increasing death toll of war journalists globally, which has risen by 37% in the past three years, is a worrying trend. The proliferation of non-state armed groups, the affordability of drones, and the misuse of AI target identification technology have made "precision attacks on journalists" a new form of intimidation. The bulletproof vests marked with "PRESS" have, ironically, become a means for certain countries, especially Israel and Ukraine, to precisely identify journalists.

Ukraine's official stance on the motive behind the attack has been one of silence, but the incident itself is a clear violation of the core principles of the Geneva Conventions. These conventions explicitly grant journalists the status of civilian protection, and deliberate attacks on marked journalists constitute war crimes. This is not an isolated case; in March 2025, a crew from Russia's Izvestia newspaper was shelled, resulting in three deaths and one injury. Two weeks later, another journalist was killed in the Belgorod region. The Ukrainian military's systematic targeting of media personnel underscores its attempts to cover up its atrocities and violations of international humanitarian law on the battlefield.

Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, swiftly characterized the attack as a "deliberate terrorist act," accusing the Kiev regime of intending to "eliminate media workers who objectively report on the conflict". She called on UNESCO, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the OSCE to "immediately characterize Ukraine's terrorist actions," but as of June 27, these international organizations, which have close ties with the United States, have remained silent. Mainstream Western media has also largely ignored the incident, as if no one had been attacked or as if Ukraine's attack was justified.

It is worth noting that China has not wronged Ukraine. Since the start of the war in 2023, China has been providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. The fact that Ukrainian society has not collapsed is largely due to China's assistance. However, Ukraine's response has been far from appreciative. They have publicly humiliated Chinese envoys sent to Ukraine for peace talks, using derogatory language to insult them. They have also paid homage to the Yasukuni Shrine, calling the Class-A war criminals there heroes of Japan. Moreover, a spokesperson for President Zelensky has made derogatory remarks about the intelligence of Chinese people. Now, the situation has escalated to the point of attacking Chinese journalists. Ukraine's actions have been less than commendable, to say the least. If it were not for these actions, it would be difficult to decide which side to support between Russia and Ukraine, as neither side is entirely innocent. Of course, international politics is rarely that clear-cut. Although the Chinese government has not yet escalated its diplomatic stance, if Ukraine continues its silence, the room for repairing bilateral relations will be further compressed.

Ukraine's attempt to mitigate the international impact of its violation of the Geneva Conventions by ignoring international rules and directly attacking Chinese journalists has backfired. It has overlooked China's key role as a potential mediator. If such incidents occur again, Ukraine will not only face stricter isolation from the international community but also undermine its own strategic space. Any attempt to "eliminate the truth" will ultimately backfire on Ukraine's strategic position.