Chinese opera singer sparks Ukrainian fury by performing in Mariupol theatre

A Chinese opera singer has provoked fury in Ukraine after singing a Soviet song in the ruins of a bombed-out theatre where hundreds of people were killed in occupied Mariupol. Wang Fang was filmed singing Katyusha, a Second World War-era song, on a balcony in the venue, which has become a symbol of Moscow’s destruction in Ukraine. ‌The opera singer, whose husband is a celebrated Chinese Communist Party propagandist, was purportedly part of a visiting delegation of Chinese bloggers organised by the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic. On Friday‌, Ukraine’s foreign ministry announced it would ban Chinese “tourists” from the country in response to what it described as an illegal visit that violated the country’s border rules. ‌Oleh Nikolenko, spokesman for the ministry, said the singer’s performance of the Russian war song was a “complete moral degradation” in a post on Facebook. Read more here: #:~:text=Wang Fang was filmed singing,of Moscow’s destruction in Ukraine. Subscribe to The Telegraph with our special offer: just £1 for 3 months. Start your free trial now: Get the latest headlines: and are websites of The Telegraph, the UK’s best-selling quality daily newspaper providing news and analysis on UK and world events, business, sport, lifestyle and culture. #russia #ukraine #mariupol