‘Why are Russians Fighting in Ukraine Only to Hand Over Baikal to China?’ Residents Ask

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Oct. 21 – A clash between residents of the Transbaikal, on the one hand, and Russian officials and Chinese workers, on the other, is spreading from Russian courtrooms to villages where in at least one case a Russian has taken the law into his own hands and even used guns against Chinese brought in to develop industry and transport there.

            The situation is getting out of hand, prompting one resident of the region near Lake Baikal to sayt “the Chinese have been saying for a long time, ‘Baikal is ours’” [and] soon they’ll say ‘And Crimea is ours too.’ I keep asking: what are our guys fighting for. So that these Chinese people can strut around here? Why?” (istories.media/stories/2025/10/21/ugol-zabaikalye/).

            According to the Important Stories portal, eleven years ago, Oleg Deripaska and his En+ group signed an agreement with China’s Shenhua Group to expand the export of coal to China from the Transbaikal, something that requires the expansion of mining and the development of transportation networks.

            Because of the negative environmental impact of both the expanded mining and the routing of new railways and highways through areas that had been off limits lest they destroy the unique natural environment around one of Russia’s most storied lakes, the project has sparked protests and court cases by residents even though Russian officials welcome it.

            In February 2025, a Russian court rejected a government ecological assessment and ordered the companies involved to cease work. The Russian coal company involved has appealed and new documentation is supported to be presented in a few months (baikal-journal.ru/2025/09/08/sud-priznal-ekspertizu-ugolnoj-dorogi-nezakonnoj-no-v-cheremhovo-vse-ravno-vyrubayut-kedrovniki/).

            But despite the decision of the court, the companies involved have continued to build roads and railways, often harming what had been protected regions.  Local people feel powerless to stop this. After all, they say, China is “a world power while we live in poverty.” And Russian officials are now welcoming in Chinese workers to do the job.

            Russian officials have helped Chinese companies force Russians out of their homes so that there will be a place for Chinese workers to live. In response, one resident took out his gun and began “shooting out the window” at the Chinese. Others have not gone that far at least not yet.

            But tensions are escalating, and the readiness of some residents to compare what is going on in Putin’s war in Ukraine – where local men have died – with the war of Russian officials against their own people in the Transbaikal to help not Russians but the Chinese is telling. And if the courts vacate their original stop order early next year, an explosion is likely.