US says China is supplying missile and drone engines to Russia

The US has accused China of providing Russia with cruise missile and drone engines and machine tools for ballistic missiles, as it urges Europe to step up diplomatic and economic pressure on Beijing to stop the sales.

In disclosing previously classified intelligence, senior US officials said Chinese and Russian groups were working to jointly produce drones inside Russia. They said China had also supplied 90 per cent of chips imported by Russia last year which were being used to make tanks, missiles and aircraft.

The officials added China was also helping Russia to improve its satellite and other space-based capabilities to help prosecute its war in Ukraine, and Beijing was also providing satellite imagery.

Dennis Wilder, a former top China military analyst at the CIA, said the disclosure “far exceeds previous estimates and shows a concerted programme by China’s leaders” to help Moscow prosecute the war in Ukraine.

“Russia lost access to critical machine tools from Europe at the beginning of the conflict and China has moved to fill the gap,” said Wilder, now at Georgetown University.

The person said Beijing had become increasingly confident that its support for Moscow would not jeopardise economic relations with Europe, and it would be concerned about any stepped up pressure given its economic problems. She said sanctions from European countries could have a very significant impact on changing the calculus in China.

Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz will have an opportunity to convey the message to…   Xi when he meets him on Tuesday during his second official trip to China. Ahead of the trip, one senior German official said Berlin was “concerned” Beijing was “delivering goods to Russia that support its war effort — dual-use technologies that Russia can use for military purposes”.

“It’s something we’re very concerned about,” he said. “We will make that clear in the talks.”

The Chinese embassy in the US said China had “not provided weaponry to any party” in the Ukraine conflict.

“The normal trade between China and Russia should not be interfered or restricted. We urge the US side to refrain from disparaging and scapegoating the normal relationship between China and Russia,” said Liu Pengyu, the embassy spokesperson.