This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made headlines when he said on April 8 that Ukrainian forces had captured two Chinese nationals fighting with the Russian Army.
But are the two captured Chinese citizens proof that Beijing is sending soldiers to fight for Russia against Ukraine? The short answer is no.
Chinese nationals fighting in Ukraine are not new, and there is currently no public evidence showing the two captured men were sent by Beijing.
A few hundred Chinese nationals are thought to have traveled to fight as mercenaries with Russia’s army, and there have been previous reports on Russian military groups on Telegram about Chinese citizens killed fighting alongside Russian forces.
A Russian Defense Ministry hospital database obtained exclusively by RFE/RL in February also showed Chinese mercenaries serving alongside Russian troops.
But the more important development that this episode represents for the war in Ukraine is the departure Zelenskyy’s comments mark from the carefully balanced diplomatic tightrope Kyiv had been walking with China since Russia launched its full-scale invasion against Ukraine in 2022.
Beijing has been Moscow’s strongest partner amid the war and has boosted Russia’s war machine with stepped-up trade and a steady flow of militarily useful civilian goods. China, however, has stopped short of providing Russia weapons or military expertise.
As this has unfolded, Kyiv has largely refrained from criticizing China — with a few exceptions — as Ukraine has held out hope to potentially win over Chinese cooperation in a future peace deal.
What’s Behind Zelenskyy’s New Approach to China?
So what’s changed for Zelenskyy? The most obvious is his relationship with Washington and lingering questions about future US military support for Kyiv.
His statements after the announcement of the two fighters being captured also show how linking the war more clearly to China may shift the needle for his dynamic with US President Donald Trump.
In his social media post on April 8, which included a video of a captured soldier describing a drone attack in Chinese, Zelenskyy said the involvement of Chinese nationals alongside Russian troops “is a clear signal that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin intends to do anything but end the war. He is looking for ways to continue fighting.”
Speaking at a press conference later that day, the Ukrainian president went on to imply the two fighters were evidence of the international backing Moscow has behind it on the battlefield.
“This is another country that militarily supports Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on the side of Russia. This is another one after Iran and the North Korean military,” he said.
Ukraine’s Role In The US-China Power Struggle
Beijing has been adamant that it doesn’t have its own troops on the ground in Ukraine. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on April 9 that it is currently verifying information about the two nationals with Ukraine and that it has always told its citizens to refrain from participating in military operations.
But Zelenskyy appears to be aiming to lump China together with North Korea, which has sent thousands of troops to fight with Russia, and Iran, which has provided Moscow with drones to bombard Ukrainian infrastructure.
This was pushed further when he said he had tasked Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha with contacting Beijing and summoning China’s charge d’affaires posted at its embassy in Kyiv.
Taking to social media, Sybiha said that “Chinese citizens fighting as part of Russia’s invasion army in Ukraine puts into question China’s declared stance for peace and undermines Beijing’s credibility as a responsible permanent member of the UN Security Council.”
While Trump and senior US officials have floated the prospect of a reset with Moscow in exchange for ending the war, China remains in the US president’s crosshairs — and countering Beijing could also come at the expense of supporting Ukraine.
As laid out in a leaked internal Pentagon memo published by The Washington Post at the end of March, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said stopping a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan should be the top priority and doing so will require the Pentagon to “assume risk in other theaters” amid personnel and resource constraints.
It goes on to call for pressuring allies in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia to spend more on defense to take on a larger role in deterring other US adversaries like Iran, North Korea, and Russia so the United States can devote more resources to China.
With the future of Ukraine’s relationship with the United States uncertain amid a push by Trump to reach a peace deal of the war as it enters its fourth year, Zelenskyy appears to be searching for his own China card to play.
© American Military News
