Fed up with the U.S., Ukraine cuts deals with China and shuts up about the Uyghurs

Frustrated with the U.S., Ukraine is cutting deals with a rival superpower, inviting China to build infrastructure while holding back criticism of Beijing's human rights record.

Ukraine last month touted agreements with China to build airports, roads and railways in the Eastern European country and expressed gratitude for deliveries of Chinese-made Covid-19 vaccines.

Just days before the cooperation deals were clinched, Kyiv chose to stay silent about China's alleged human rights abuses.

At the U.N. Human Rights Council, Ukraine withdrew its signature from a joint statement calling on China to allow independent observers into the country's Xinjiang region to investigate reports of persecution of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities.

Read the full story and more from NBC News.