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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that he has obtained information suggesting that China is providing weapons to Russia, including gunpowder and artillery.
“We have received information that China is supplying weapons to the Russian Federation and we are ready to discuss the matter in detail. According to the security service and intelligence reports, we have obtained information regarding gunpowder and artillery.”
The Ukrainian President did not go into detail about the extent of Chinese support or the specific type of weapons being supplied, but mentioned that Kyiv would provide comprehensive findings next week.
“We believe that the Chinese representatives are involved in the production of certain weapons on Russian territory. We will be able to discuss this topic in detail next week.”
Zelenskyy noted that Kyiv was taken aback by the news.
“It’s not really surprising, but we didn’t want to witness the facts that we experienced and I experienced.”
The Ukrainian President said he had communicated with China’s President Xi Jinping during the war and asked him directly about China’s provision of weapons to the Kremlin.
Zelenskyy mentioned that he was assured at the time that Beijing had no involvement and no intention of selling or supplying arms to Moscow.
“I spoke with the Chinese leader during the war and asked him directly about weapons. He gave me his word that he would not sell weapons or send them to Russia,” he noted.
“However, we are now seeing different information. Regardless, we have facts about China and Russia’s collaboration to strengthen their defense capabilities. And these are unsettling facts.”
China has consistently maintained its neutrality in the Ukraine conflict, but has provided diplomatic and economic support to Russia following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
