(TheConservativeTimes.org) – China is reportedly supplying Russia with helicopters, drones and other military resources to Russian military contractors amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, despite the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) official claim of neutrality in the war.
Despite the CCP’s official neutral stance, however, Russia’s defense department has received more than $200 billion in trade with China, while China’s trade with other nations has fallen significantly, according to a report by the Telegraph.
Many of the Russian companies receiving tens of thousands of shipments from China are missile launcher manufacturers, as well as other companies that make armored vehicles and strategic bombers.
Chinese exports that may be tied to military spending more than tripled in the fiscal year ending in June compared with last year, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity.
China has also been exporting goods that have civilian uses to Russia. These goods are less likely to get flagged as they are not for military purposes. Another investigation by the Telegraph, however, found that China had shipped 1,000 military drones to Russia before Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Smaller items, such as optical sights for firearms, are far easier to hide from international sanctions, with their intended use being labeled as “hunting” on the invoices. Such optical sights were sent to more than 50 Russian companies for about $2.5 million last year, which is more than double the previous year’s amount.
Shipments of titanium alloy from China have also doubled in recent years, with at least 520 shipments of the material to a Russian armored vehicle company.
The Telegraph also found that helicopters were also being shipped from China to Russia during the Russian invasion. The repeated Chinese support of Russian military efforts in Ukraine comes as Western countries, including the U.S., continue to funnel billions of dollars’ worth of aid and military supplies to Ukraine in an effort to counter Russian expansion in the region.
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