President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine on Tuesday accused Chinese citizens of working at a drone production site in Russia and suggested that Moscow may have stolen drone technology from China.
Zelenskyy made this statement at a news conference in Kyiv a few days after he said China was supplying weapons and gunpowder to Russia, the first time he has accused Beijing of direct military aid to Moscow, something China staunchly denied.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said it had summoned Chinese Ambassador Ma Shengkun and expressed Ukraine's serious concerns over Chinese involvement in the war.
In suggesting that Russia may have obtained drone technology from China without Beijing actually knowing, Zelenskyy appeared to be softening his tone towards China, which casts itself as neutral on the war in Ukraine.
The flurry of Ukrainian allegations directed at China in recent days has been particularly striking at a sensitive moment for Kyiv in the US-led diplomatic effort to end Russia's war in Ukraine.
Earlier this month, Zelenskyy said that Russia was recruiting Chinese nationals via social media to fight in its armed forces and that Beijing officials were aware of that.
He further stated that Kyiv was trying to assess whether the recruits were receiving instructions from Beijing.
However, China has reaffirmed its support for peace efforts in Ukraine and said relevant parties should avoid irresponsible remarks, in an apparent jab at Zelenskyy's comment about Chinese citizens fighting there for Russia.
Zelenskiy told reporters on Tuesday that he had instructed officials to send information to the Chinese government through official channels on its findings.
“Separately, I asked the Security Service of Ukraine to transfer information of a broader nature to the Chinese side regarding Chinese citizens who work at the drone factory.
“We believe that it may be that Russia stole – made an agreement with these citizens outside the agreements with the Chinese leadership – stole these technologies,” he said.
