In the past, the "retrogrades" we saw in the news were fire fighters, policemen, soldiers, medical personnel, etc., who stepped forward when the people were in danger, and the route they traveled was exactly the opposite of the route of the masses evacuated to a safe area, and they all went straight to the danger. Today, during the "Russo-Ukrainian War", there was another group of "retrogrades" who risked their lives to go to the direction of the battlefield, just to bring the people a line of detailed news reports. They are Chinese foreign correspondents. Xinhua News Agency reporter Lu Jinbo is one of them.
Video screenshots
On February 24, the "Russo-Ukrainian War" broke out completely. In accordance with the unified deployment of Xinhua News Agency in Minsk, Belarus, As a reinforcement reporter, Lu Jinbo, a reinforcement reporter, drove 550 kilometers from Belarus to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, in the absence of planes, trains, and the suspension of long-distance buses.
By the time of the headquarters order, Ukraine had completely blockaded its airspace, grounded planes and suspended trains. Only long-distance buses are left with long-distance buses. Lu Jinbo grabbed a ticket and packed his bags and prepared to go. Unexpectedly, I received a call from the station an hour later: "The Russian-Ukrainian border is now closed, and all long-distance trains have been cancelled." ”
Ruzimbo is an experienced journalist based in Eurasia who has covered Crimea and the conflict zones of Eastern Ukraine. He knows that in this special situation, there are no rules to speak of, and anything can happen, but the mission is there, and it must go!
Lu Jinbo sorted out the camera equipment and passport documents he carried, carried the gasoline drum and got into the car. He wanted to make the impossible possible.
Refuel, eat, prepare bread and water, and drive on the road.
The 550 km navigation shows that it takes 8 hours, which is still the ideal time without special circumstances.
Unexpectedly, when I first arrived at the Border Checkpoint of Belarus, I was dissuaded by the customs officers. "Now ukraine is at war, you can't go over."
Lu Jinbo identified himself to the customs personnel, explained the situation, and took out passports, press cards, travel certificates, car certificates and other documents. The customs officer hesitated, not knowing whether to let him go through customs. Lu Jinbo said another sentence: "Our journalist colleagues in Kiev are busy reporting that they are tired and sick, and they are in urgent need of help!" Perhaps this sentence touched the customs officer, who finally agreed to let him go with admiration and helplessness, and shook hands with him to say goodbye.
Ukrainian Customs Empty (Video Screenshot)
Entering the Ukrainian border from Belarus, he found that it was all chaotic. Ukrainian customs are brightly lit, but there is no staff, customs clearance is all self-help, lifting the pole and driving away is no one cares.
Time was tight, he didn't have time to think about what to do when he left Ukraine without an entry stamp on his passport, and he hurried to get on the road, and his colleagues in Kiev were still waiting for him.
Driving a night car in the country may not be a big deal, but driving at night in Ukraine is dangerous. Because Ukraine's road infrastructure is so poor, even the highways are potholed, and you don't know when a big pothole will appear to throw the moving car out of balance. Not to mention Ukraine, which is experiencing war.
The bridge across the river was blown off, and Lu Jinbo could not move forward (video screenshot)
All the way. Suddenly, the navigation shows that there is no road ahead. Lu Jinbo quickly braked. It turned out that the bridge over the big river in front of it had been blown off by shells, and there was no way out.
Lu Jinbo searched for a long time, but to no avail. Just as he was about to give up, he suddenly saw a car coming out of the woods. He quickly stopped the car and asked the driver for directions. He followed the driver's direction and plunged headlong into the dark woods. 5 kilometers of dirt road, Lu Jinbo drove for more than 1 hour.
Finally bypassed the broken bridge and returned to the main road.
On the way to Kiev, Ruzimbo encountered a checkpoint in Ukraine. After showing their ID for inspection, they are easily released. But the second level that followed made him sweat coldly.
"Parking! flameout! Put your hands on the steering wheel! A dozen Ukrainian soldiers in camouflage uniforms raised their guns and aimed them at him. Lu Jimbo did not hesitate, he did as instructed, then quickly explained the situation in Russian, and when allowed to open the car door and trunk, he took out all the documents.
"Who let you over?" How did you get here? Didn't anyone intercept you? A series of angry questions. Lu Jinbo explained to them in Russian what was going on along the way. The leading soldier's face relaxed a lot, and after verifying that there was no problem with the documents, he said: "We are friendly with China!" "Let it go!
sigh! Lu Jinbo breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Friendship with China" is really more than just talk. China has provided a lot of help to Ukraine over the years, and the friendly exchanges between the two peoples are a witness to friendship. On the way, Lu Jinbo also witnessed the friendship of the Ukrainian people to China.
Lu Jimbo goes to the store to buy a local calling card (video screenshot)
After entering the ukrainian border, you need to change a local calling card. When buying a phone in the store, you can't swipe your card but only in the local currency (hryvnia). Lu Jinbo did not have local currency on him, and it was too late to exchange it when he set out. Just when he didn't know what to do, three local police officers entered the store to buy cigarettes. After communicating, knowing that he was Chinese, a police officer took out 100 hryvnia (about $3) and bought a card for him. This particularly touched Lu Jinbo, who then gave $5 to the policeman to thank him.
Ruzimbo drove on to Kiev. When I arrived in Kiev, I learned that a curfew had been imposed throughout Kiev, all roads were blocked, and all civilian vehicles were not allowed to enter the city. The wind and waves have passed, is it really impossible to enter the city?
Lu Jinbo relied on years of experience in front-line interviews and reporting to find local police officers who were on duty on the road. Present documents, identify yourself, and explain the situation. After the police verified it, it was really released. He was also reminded that he might be attacked here tomorrow, and he must pay attention to safety and hope that his interview will go smoothly.
Lu Jinbo finally entered the city of Kiev and met with his colleagues in victory, and then we will see a lot of news reports from Chinese journalists that he and his colleagues sent back on the front line of the war.
While many people packed their bags and fled the war, the Rukimbos risked their lives to move forward, closer! Closer! A little closer... Only close enough distance will there be the most truthful reports.
Kudos to Lu Jinbo's fearless professionalism! Kudos to all Chinese journalists abroad! Hats off to all the Chinese journalists who rushed to the danger zone to reciprocate! You are great "retrogrades"!
(Information and photo source Xinhua News Agency)