China rejects claim ‘significant’ number of troops fighting alongside Russians
The statement came after Ukraine’s President said two Chinese men had been caught fighting alongside Russian forces in Donetsk.
Ukraine’s claim that significant numbers of Chinese nationals are fighting alongside Russia’s invading army is “totally unfounded”, an official in Beijing said.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Tuesday that the Ukrainian military had captured two Chinese men fighting alongside the Russian army in the eastern Donetsk region, and had information that “significantly more” are serving alongside Russian forces.
It is the first time that Ukraine has made such a claim about Chinese fighters on its soil during the three-year Russian invasion.
China has provided strong diplomatic support for Russia since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It has also sold Russia machinery and microelectronics that it can use to make weapons, Western officials say, in addition to providing an economic lifeline through the trade in energy and consumer goods.
China is not believed to have knowingly provided Russia with troops, weapons or military expertise.
US officials have accused Iran of providing Russia with drones, while American and South Korean officials say North Korea has sent thousands of troops and ammunition to help Russia on the battlefield.
With the US and Europe having provided substantial military support and diplomatic heft for Ukraine, the war has to some degree become a contest between power blocs.
Tensions between the US and China have deepened in recent years. Disputes have centred on geopolitical influence, technology and trade – and recently escalating import tariffs between the countries have shaken global financial markets.
US President Donald Trump is trying to follow through on a campaign promise last year to swiftly end the war in Ukraine.
US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said at a briefing in Washington on Tuesday that reports of Chinese citizens fighting on behalf of Russia were “disturbing”.
“China is a major enabler of Russia in the war in Ukraine,” Ms Bruce said. China provides nearly 80% of the dual-use items Russia needs to sustain the war, she claimed.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, also called Beijing “the key enabler of Russia’s war”.
Dual-use goods are entering Russia via China, she said in Brussels, adding: “It’s clear that if China would want to really stop the support then it would have an impact.”
China has increased sales to Russia of machine tools, microelectronics and other technology that Moscow in turn is using to produce missiles, tanks, aircraft and other weaponry for the war, according to a US assessment last year.
The Kremlin has effectively rejected a US proposal for an immediate and full 30-day halt in the fighting in Ukraine. The Kyiv government has consented to it. Both sides are believed to be preparing spring-summer military campaigns.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said in Beijing that China has played a “constructive role in politically resolving the Ukraine crisis”.
Mr Lin told a daily news briefing that “the Chinese government always asks Chinese citizens to stay away from conflict zones, avoid getting involved in any form of armed conflict, and especially refrain from participating in any party’s military operations”.
His comments appeared to indicate that the captured Chinese had joined Russia’s ranks on their own initiative.
