China did not consider extracting Chinese nationals from Ukraine at first. That’s because like Russia, they expected the war to be over within a couple of days. Ukrainians would surrender en masse. Alas, Ukrainians surprised not just the Russians but also the Chinese. That’s why China is one of the last countries to evacuate their people from Ukraine.
Chinese nationals stranded in Ukraine ought to heave a sigh of relief, but their nightmare had just begun. One netizen reported that after making his way to Hungary, he had free accommodations and breakfast provided by the Hungarian government. When they contacted the Chinese embassy there, arrogant embassy officials kept pestering them to buy the air ticket to Jinan in China. While most countries provided free flights home, Chinese nationals had to fork out 17,999 yuan for their air ticket. The experience was similar for another group who escaped to Romania. They were also pestered by embassy officials to pay 17,999 yuan for a ticket to Shenyang.
In both Jinan and Shenyang, the 28+28 days quarantine conditions were dismal. They were housed in abandoned guesthouses at 4-star hotel rates and each unpalatable prison-like meal cost 40 yuan. In contrast, both India and Thailand arranged free evacuation flights for their nationals. Thai nationals even had 15,000 baht each to spend on necessities.