The European Union has challenged China’s longstanding claims of neutrality in the Ukraine war, accusing Beijing of training Russian soldiers on Chinese territory who later went on to fight against Ukrainian forces.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, on June 15 criticized China for training Russian personnel, describing Beijing as a “decisive enabler” of the Kremlin’s war effort on June 15, according to a statement by the EU’s Foreign Affairs Council.
“We have also now verified reports that the Chinese military has been training Russian military personnel to fight in Ukraine,” Kallas said after chairing a meeting of the bloc’s 27 foreign ministers in Luxembourg. She added that “we are carefully assessing the implications.”
Days before Kallas’ remarks, European Union intelligence services confirmed reports that hundreds of Russian soldiers who later participated in the war against Ukraine had received military training in China, according to a June 12 report by Ukrainian outlet European Pravda.
A senior EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity in Brussels, told the outlet that intelligence services had gathered evidence showing that Chinese military facilities had trained Russian servicemen at multiple locations.
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“Our services have confirmed information that China trained Russian soldiers. The training took place at several training bases in China and involved hundreds of Russian military personnel,” the source told European Pravda, adding that Beijing denies the allegations.
The outlet reported that the issue was expected to be discussed by EU leaders during meetings in Luxembourg.
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Reuters separately reported in May that approximately 200 Russian soldiers received military training in China in late 2025 before some of them later served in the war in Ukraine.
The news agency said it verified the information through three European intelligence services and multiple documents.
According to Reuters, the training program was outlined in a dual-language agreement signed by senior Russian and Chinese officials on July 2, 2025. The program was reportedly held in secret and involved drone warfare training at multiple locations, including Beijing and Nanjing.
The allegations come as drone warfare continues to transform the battlefield in Ukraine.
David Kirichenko, a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, recently described the conflict as the “world’s first drone war” in an analysis published by the Atlantic Council on June 18.
He wrote that Ukraine’s drone campaign has entered a new phase, helping Kyiv gain battlefield advantages while forcing Russia to adapt to rapidly changing combat conditions.
“When the invasion began in 2022, drones occupied a supporting role in a war that was still led by tanks and artillery. Four years on, drones are now the dominant weapons accounting for the vast majority of casualties,” Kirichenko wrote.
EU questions China’s neutrality claim
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has repeatedly characterized Beijing as a neutral party in the conflict and have called for a negotiated settlement.
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi reiterated that position during a March 7, 2025, press conference, saying that “Our stance has always been objective and impartial, our voice has always been calm and balanced and our purpose is to create conditions and build consensus for resolving the crisis,” he had said.
He added that the PRC had advocated “political settlement through dialogue and negotiation since the first day of the crisis.”
However, European officials argue that evidence of Chinese military training for Russian personnel undermines those claims.
One EU intelligence official told Reuters that Chinese involvement in training Russian troops at the “operational and tactical level” represented a deeper level of participation in the conflict than previously documented.
Twenty days before Russia launched its military campaign against Ukraine, Moscow and Beijing had launched their strategic partnership of coordination for a new era, also known as a “no-limits” partnership.
Beijing denies it is training Russian soldiers
China has firmly denied the allegations and accused Western governments of attempting to shift responsibility for the Ukraine conflict.
PRC Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters during a regular briefing in Beijing on Thursday, June 18, that China has not supplied lethal weapons to either side in the war and maintains strict controls on dual-use technologies.
“NATO needs to address its wrong perception of China and stop inciting confrontation and shifting blame. As a Cold War relic, it needs to seriously reflect on what role it has played with what kind of impact on peace and stability in today’s world,” Lin said.
Earlier when asked by a reporter on June 16 about Kallas’ allegations regarding Chinese training of Russian military personnel, Lin called the accusation false, saying “the remarks have no factual basis and are purely slander and smears.”
Reuters also sought comment directly from the PRC Foreign Ministry regarding the allegations.
“On the Ukraine crisis, China has consistently maintained an objective and impartial stance and worked to promote peace talks, this is consistent and clear and is witnessed by the international community,” the ministry replied in a statement to Reuters. “Relevant parties should not deliberately stoke confrontation or shift blame.”
