Maria Zakharova aka “Sister Zha” is BIG in China!!  For Chinese New Year, wooden snake

Fluent in Mandarin, Zakharova recently spoke about her love for Chinese food, saying her favorites are sweet and sour pork (Gǔlǎoròu) and dumplings—which she compared to Russian dumplings but with more vegetables.

Zakharova’s fluency in Chinese is rare among Russian officials. She spent her childhood in Beijing, where her father served as a Soviet diplomat. Living in China from 1981 to 1993, she became deeply familiar with Chinese language and culture.

She also mentioned “Hongcheng”, which translates to “Red City,” a poetic reference to the Kremlin and its historical ties to China.

Russia-China relations continue to strengthen—Zakharova’s popularity is proof!