The West Indulges China in Its Backing for Russia Against Ukraine
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- China’s military secretly trained about 200 Russian military personnel in China late last year, according to a May 19 Reuters report citing three European intelligence agencies.
- Beijing was an alleged training site, together with Nanjing, under an agreement signed in July 2025.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has repeatedly urged President Xi Jinping to persuade President Vladimir Putin to end the war, despite no world leader publicly condemning the training.
- Wang Yi reiterated Beijing’s neutral stance and commitment to peace talks at the Munich Security Conference in February 2024 and again in a July 2025 press briefing with German Foreign Minister Johann David Wadephul.
- China has boosted exports of microchips, electronic components, and raw materials to Russia within the first months of the invasion, supplying dual‑use items that sustain Moscow’s war effort.
Why it matters: Ukraine loses a strategic edge as Russia gains roughly 200 trained troops and continued dual‑use supplies, while the West’s silence lets Beijing deepen its leverage over global tech chains and erodes collective security.
