Moscow imports $100M worth of drones from China this year
That's according to Politico, Ukrinform reports.
Chinese exports of ceramics, a component used in body armor, increased by 69% to Russia to more than $225 million, while dropping by 61% to Ukraine to a mere $5 million, Chinese and Ukrainian customs data show.
"What is very clear is that China, for all its claims that it is a neutral actor, is in fact supporting Russia's positions in this war," said Helena Legarda, a lead analyst specializing in Chinese defense and foreign policy at the Mercator Institute for China Studies, a Berlin think tank.
Were China to cross the red line and sell weapons or military equipment to Russia, Legarda said she would expect the EU to enforce secondary sanctions targeting enablers of Putin's war of aggression. But, she added, equipment like body armor, thermal imaging, and even commercial drones that can be used in offensive frontline operations are unlikely to trigger a response.
China's Shanghai H Win, a manufacturer of military-grade protective gear, has enjoyed a surge in business since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. One of its buyers is Silva, a company headquartered in the remote Eastern Siberian region of Buryatia. It ordered 100,000 bulletproof vests and 100,000 helmets.
According to public records, Silva was registered only last September. It reported zero revenues for 2022. A Google Street View search of its address in Ulan-Ude, the capital of Buryatia, takes visitors to a dilapidated apartment block.
Another Russian company called Legittelekom, whose homepage reveals it to be a Moscow freight forwarding company, also appears as a buyer of 100,000 items of headgear and 100,000 suits of outerwear from Deekon Shanghai, according to filings dated last November 24.
