Anna Hartz
Zelenskyy Accuses China of Supporting Russian Military with Arms
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For a long time, China claimed it was neutral in the war between Russia and Ukraine. But that story might be changing.
On April 17, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that China is supplying weapons to Russia. He made the statement during a press briefing in Kyiv.
Zelenskyy explained that Ukraine’s Security Service and military intelligence found proof.
He said they have information about gunpowder and artillery being made with help from Chinese sources, reports the Kyiv Independent.
According to him, more details could be shared in the coming days. He also mentioned that China may be helping to manufacture weapons on Russian soil.
This is the first time Kyiv has clearly said that Beijing is helping Russia’s military.
In the past, countries like Iran and North Korea were known to send arms to Russia. Now, China may be joining them.
Western officials and analysts have suspected this for some time. There have been reports suggesting Chinese weapons were making their way to the Russian army.
However, China has always denied it. Just last year, Zelenskyy said that China had promised not to give weapons to Russia.
Even so, China has not acted like a neutral country. It has grown closer to Moscow during the war.
Trade between the two countries has gone up. China has helped Russia dodge some of the effects of Western sanctions.
It also supplies a lot of dual-use items—things that can be used both for civilian and military purposes.
Earlier this month, Ukrainian soldiers captured two Chinese nationals in Donetsk Oblast.
They had been fighting alongside Russian forces. One of them claimed he paid a middleman in China around $3,500 to join the Russian army.
In return, he was promised Russian citizenship.
Zelenskyy later said that several hundred Chinese citizens may now be fighting on Russia’s side.
Despite this, Beijing continues to deny that it is directly involved in the war.
Chinese officials say they’ve warned their people not to get involved in any foreign conflicts. But Ukraine’s latest findings may prove otherwise.