China assists Russian drone production with smuggled Western parts — Estonian intel

Reuters reported the information.

The report identifies China as Russia’s primary hub for importing high-tech and dual-use goods, helping it evade Western sanctions. Around 80% of such components reaching Russia now come from China, while previous Ukrainian reports indicated that about 60% of foreign parts in Russian weapons found on the battlefield originate from China.

"Chinese interests here lie in preventing Russia from losing the war in Ukraine as such an outcome would represent a victory for the United States, which is the main rival for China," stated Kaupo Rosin, Director General of Estonia's Foreign Intelligence Department.

Russia lacks domestic alternatives for drone parts and largely sources them from the West, with Estonian intelligence suggesting that Western companies' offices in China may be involved in the schemes.

"The Chinese government... facilitates bilateral cooperation and covert transfers of dual-use components through private companies. This approach will likely decrease Russia's dependency on Western components and, in the long term, could undermine the West's ability to leverage influence in this domain," it said.