(term coined c. 1920s) unequal treaty – a treaty between China and one or more aggressor nations (including Russia, Japan and various Western powers) which imposed humiliating conditions on China (in the 19th and early 20th centuries)
Treaty of Saint Petersburg of 1881, whereby Russia handed back Yili province to Qing China in exchange for compensation payment and unequal treaty rights
Treaty of Saint Petersburg of 1881, whereby Russia handed back Yili province to Qing China in exchange for compensation payment and unequal treaty rights
lit. grasshoppers tied together with a piece of string (idiom) / fig. people who are in it together for better or worse / people who will sink or swim together