China’s support for Russia’s war on Ukraine is even more extensive than previously thought. Beijing’s aid for the Russian war effort speaks volumes about both the present and future of their relationship. And it tells us much about how America’s enemies operate and why.
Approximately “60% of the Russian war effort is being bankrolled by China,” United Kingdom Air Marshal Edward Springer recently told a gathering of British parliamentarians. “China has discreetly built supply lines going to drone factories in Russia,” Springer advised the House of Commons Defence Committee on Feb. 3.
“Russia,” Springer noted, “can only maintain this war because China is essentially bankrolling it.”
On the one hand, Springer’s comments are unsurprising. Beijing’s support for Moscow’s war has been both long-standing and well-documented. By purchasing large quantities of Russian oil, China has fueled Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war machine. But Beijing has done far more than grease Moscow’s gears.
China has provided crucial assistance for Russia’s war on Ukraine from the very beginning. And that support has only expanded and deepened.
China has been essential in supplying dual-use components for Russia’s war and has played a key role in the drone warfare that has become so associated with the conflict. According to the U.S. State Department, nearly 80% of the sanctioned dual-use components that Russia requires come from China. The Middle Kingdom has also gifted Russia with satellite imagery, advisers, and drone tech specialists, among other needs. China has also supplied millions of dollars of lithium batteries and hundreds of thousands of miles of fiber-optic cable.
China’s military, tech, and industrial aid make Russia’s war possible. Beijing, it must be said, has blood on its hands. European leaders who decry Russian aggression but fete the Chinese Communist Party are working at cross purposes.
No less important, China has provided Russia with diplomatic and political cover, running interference in international forums like the United Nations. The two are openly collaborating, and not just in Ukraine. Both nations have increased joint military exercises, for example.
What Russia gets from the arrangement is clear. It is worth dwelling on what China receives.
The war in Ukraine provides China with the opportunity to both test and observe tactics and technology, giving its People’s Liberation Army important battlefield lessons. Chinese support also works to distract the West and deplete key stockpiles of munitions. But there’s another benefit too, and it is one that Beijing is less likely to tout.
No matter how the war ends, Russia is likely to be left weaker, having expended considerable men, money, and resources. By fueling a long-running war of attrition, China is making its neighbor weaker in the long term.
While they are currently allied, there are historical points of tension. The two share borders and a history of friction. In the late 1960s, this led to border skirmishes and even the specter of nuclear war. By supporting Russia, China is playing the long game, turning its neighbor into a supplicant and permanent junior partner.
A ‘NEW WORLD ORDER’ IS HERE, AND IT’S HERE TO STAY
Noting this history, some have dismissed the idea of a Sino-Russian alliance. But the numbers don’t lie. And nations don’t need to be friends to be allies.
In World War II, for example, Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan scarcely communicated. Tokyo didn’t tell Berlin about its Pearl Harbor plans. They didn’t collaborate on strategy, nor did they do much in the way of military cooperation. Each was suspicious of the other. Yet, this didn’t prevent them from building on shared interests and objectives.
The same is true for Russia and China today. Both have natural points of friction. But at present, they have the same mission: overthrowing the U.S.-led international order. And they’re working overtime to achieve it.
