China fuels Russia’s war in Ukraine with weapons components, US warns

China is now the “primary contributor” to Russia’s war in Ukraine and wider military expansion through its provision of critical components for weaponry, the United States has warned.

Beijing’s supply of machine tools, semiconductors and other parts key to producing weapons is contributing to “the biggest threat to European security since the end of the Cold War” Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, said on Friday.

Mr Blinken added that Washington had made it very clear to Beijing and others that they should not be aiding Russia’s war effort.

“When it comes to Russia’s defence industrial base, the primary contributor in this moment to that is China,” Mr Blinken said on the final day of a three-day gathering of G7 foreign ministers on the Italian island of Capri.

“We see China sharing machine tools, semiconductors, other dual-use items that have helped Russia rebuild the defence industrial base.

“China can’t have it both ways. It can’t afford that. You want to have positive, friendly relations with countries in Europe, and at the same time, you are fuelling the biggest threat to European security since the end of the Cold War.”

Foreign ministers from the G7 countries, including Mr Blinken and Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, discussed the war in Ukraine, the conflict in Gaza and the missile strikes exchanged between Israel and Iran at the meeting.

Washington wants its European allies to ramp up pressure on China to dissuade it from assisting Russia, amid warnings that Ukrainian forces are outmanned and outgunned.

Moscow’s invasion, launched in February 2022, came just weeks after Russia and China declared a “no limits partnership”.

In an assessment last week, the Americans accused Beijing of helping Russia undertake “its most ambitious defence expansion since the Soviet era and on a faster timeline than we believed possible”.

Washington believes Chinese assistance includes materiel and technology that is key to the manufacturing of missiles, drones, tanks and aircraft, among other things.

Mr Blinken’s criticism of Beijing was echoed by Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s foreign minister.

“If China openly pursues an ever closer partnership with Russia, which is waging an illegal war against Ukraine ... we cannot accept this,” she said.

There have been long-standing suspicions that China is supplying vital components to Moscow.

Last April, Ukrainian officials said their forces were finding a growing number of Chinese components, in particular electronics, in Russian weapons discarded on the battlefield.

Western sanctions designed to restrict companies from supplying military and dual-use items – which can be used for both civilian and military applications – to Russia meant that Moscow had turned to Beijing, officials in Kyiv said.

They said they found Chinese-made components in a navigation system fitted in aerial drones that had previously used a Swiss system.

They also said they found Chinese parts in fire control systems in Russian tanks. Prior to Western sanctions, the tanks had used French-made parts.