Zelenskyy: 155 Chinese citizens are fighting for Russia
Source: Zelenskyy during a press conference; Interfax-Ukraine
Quote: "The 'Chinese' issue is serious. There are 155 people with surnames and passport data – 155 Chinese citizens fighting against Ukrainians on Ukrainian soil. We are gathering information and believe that there are many more. We have passport data for these 155 [soldiers], their origins, their Chinese documents, ages, etc. Also, their places of service: the 70th, 71st, 255th motorised rifle regiments and so on."
Details: Zelenskyy stated that the Russians are recruiting Chinese citizens, particularly through social media platforms such as TikTok and other Chinese social networks.
Quote: "Official Beijing knows about this. The Russians are spreading recruitment ads through Chinese social networks. This is not secret recruitment – that's important. There may also be secret recruitment."
Details: After being recruited, these individuals arrive in Moscow, where they undergo medical checks for three to four days, followed by one to two months in training centres.
Quote: "They are fighting on the territory of Ukraine. They receive migration cards, as well as [Russian] Mir payment system cards, on which they receive money."
Background:
On 8 April, Zelenskyy reported that Ukrainian troops in Donetsk Oblast had captured two Chinese citizens who were fighting in the ranks of the Russian military. Zelenskyy also noted that he had instructed Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha to urgently contact Beijing to determine how China intends to respond.
The two citizens of the People's Republic of China were captured in Donetsk Oblast by soldiers from the 81st Separate Airborne Slobozhanska Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces and the 157th Separate Mechanised Brigade.
US Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce stressed China's role in supporting Russian aggression after evidence had been published of Chinese citizens participating in the war against Ukraine.
A Chinese citizen captured by Ukrainian forces during the fighting near the settlement of Bilohorivka in Luhansk Oblast revealed that he joined the Russian military through an intermediary in China, paying RUB 300,000 (approximately US$3,480). His motivation was the promise of Russian citizenship. He underwent military training in occupied Luhansk Oblast, where he had no interpreter, relying instead on gestures and a phone to communicate.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Newsweek
6 minutes ago
- Newsweek
NATO Scrambles Supersonic Fighter Jets Amid 'Massive' Russian Attacks
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. 🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur. Fighter jets from NATO nations Poland and Sweden responded to a "massive" Russian aerial assault on Ukraine overnight, the Polish military said on Monday. "Operations of Polish and allied aviation have begun, and ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have reached a state of highest readiness," the Polish military said in a statement posted to social media early on Monday. Gripen fighter jets belonging to Sweden's air force, stationed in northern Poland, "helped ensure the safety of Polish skies tonight," Warsaw's Operational Command said. Sweden and the United Kingdom currently have a rotation of fighter jets stationed in Poland as part of NATO's air policing mission. Poland later said no Russian targets crossed into Polish airspace during its "massive missile attack on Ukrainian territory." Two JAS 39 Gripen fighters flying above Sweden in 2013. Two JAS 39 Gripen fighters flying above Sweden in 2013. JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images This is a developing story. More to follow.
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Ukraine calls for talks with Russia next week
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for talks with Russia next week to push forward ceasefire talks amid growing US pressure on Moscow to reach a deal. Ukraine's Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Rustem Umerov, proposed the a meeting with the Russian side for next week, Zelensky said during his daily address on Saturday. 'The dynamics of the negotiations must improve. We need to do everything possible to achieve a ceasefire. The Russian side must stop avoiding decisions regarding prisoner exchanges, the return of children, and the cessation of killings,' Zelensky said. 'A meeting at the leadership level is essential to genuinely secure peace. Ukraine is ready for such a meeting,' he added. Russian state media outlet TASS reported that a source close to Russia's negotiating team confirmed that they had received Kyiv's proposal for a meeting. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian media on Sunday that Russia is 'ready to move quickly' on achieving a peace deal with Ukraine, but its 'main goal' was to achieve its 'objectives.' Russian President Vladimir Putin 'has repeatedly expressed his desire to transition the Ukrainian settlement process into a peaceful track as soon as possible. It's a lengthy process that requires effort, and it's not simple. And most likely, this is increasingly being understood in Washington,' Peskov told Russian state media journalist Pavel Zarubin. The last round of ceasefire talks in Istanbul ended swiftly in early June, with Russian and Ukrainian delegates meeting for barely over an hour before calling it quits. According to Russian state media, Russia put forward maximalist territorial demands as part of their preconditions for a ceasefire. Ukraine has previously refused to consider any territorial concessions in exchange for peace. Zelensky's call for talks arrives just after US President Donald Trump offered Putin a 50-day window to achieve a ceasefire before the US implements high tariffs on Russian goods, alongside 'secondary tariffs' on goods from countries that purchase Russian oil. 'We're going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days,' Trump said during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office earlier this week. 'I use trade for a lot of things,' Trump added. 'But it's great for settling wars.' Trump has expressed increasing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent weeks, even complaining that Putin's assurances about ceasefire progress are 'bullshit.' Yet Western analysts and Ukrainian officials say that the president's 50-day-window is unlikely to deter Putin from accelerating Russia's summer offensive in the coming weeks. Moreover, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has dismissed Trump's threatened tariffs as mere bluster. 'Fifty days – it used to be 24 hours,' Lavrov said. 'It used to be 100 days; we've been through all of this.' Daria Tarasova-Markina contributed reporting.
San Francisco Chronicle
35 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Chinese investors snap up stocks on hopes for an end to price wars and overcapacity
BEIJING (AP) — China's stock market is buzzing over government promises to tackle price wars that have hurt profits and worsened global trade tensions. The prevailing catchphrase is 'anti-involution,' and it reflects efforts to curb intense competition and overcapacity in industries like solar panels, steel, and electric vehicles. With rising trade barriers such as President Donald Trump's higher tariffs, and relatively weak domestic demand, manufacturers have been slashing prices, undermining their bottom lines and driving some out of business. The producer price index, which measures the price that factories receive for their goods, has fallen steadily for nearly three years in China in a prolonged bout of deflation. The long-running issue spilled over into global markets as low-priced Chinese exports worsen trade friction with key trading partners including the United States and Europe. Solar panel glass makers agree to cut output by 30% In a series of recent statements, the Chinese government and industry associations have signaled they're getting serious about reining in cut-throat competition, known as invollution or 'neijuan' in Chinese. The top 10 makers of glass for solar panels agreed on June 30 to shut kilns and cut production by 30%, an industry association said. The government has launched an auto safety inspection campaign, addressing concerns that automakers were skimping on quality to cut costs. It's unclear whether these efforts will succeed, but the sense that China may finally be tackling this chronic problem was enough to spark a rally in stocks in some of those under-pressure sectors. Shares of Liuzhou Iron & Steel Co. gained 10% on Friday and have risen more than 70% since June 30. Solar panel glass producer Changzhou Almaden Co. fell at the end of last week but is still up about 50%. More broadly, two exchange traded funds in solar panels and steel have risen about 10%, outpacing a 3.2% rise in the Shanghai Composite, China's leading market index. The performance of EV-maker stocks has been mixed, with Li Auto and Nio recording double-digit percentage gains while market leader BYD declined. Foreigners can't buy Chinese stocks directly but they are able to invest in about 2,700 stocks and 250 exchange traded funds through the Hong Kong exchange. Government calls intense price wars 'disorderly' The gains follow high-level government pronouncements against disorderly price wars. On June 29, the People's Daily newspaper, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, ran a lengthy page 1 article on involution, saying they run counter to the party's goal of high quality economic development. Chinese leader Xi Jinping weighed in at a closed-door economic meeting, calling for better regulating competition and incentives by local governments to attract factory investments that are blamed for overinvestment in affected industries. The tougher talk began with a focus on automakers in late May, specifically around electric vehicle price wars that began more than three years ago. Analysts at investment bank UBS said the shift is good news for auto industry profits and company stocks. 'Though it's difficult to imagine a sudden U-turn of the industry from fierce competition to orderly consolidation, it's indeed possible to have near-term ceasefire of the price war,' they wrote. Weak demand and overcapacity bring a fight for survival After BYD launched another round of price cuts on May 23, some competitors, the main industry association and government all called for fair and sustainable competition. The EV battery industry, the cement association and major construction companies have issued statements echoing calls for an end to excess competition. The term involution, which suggests a spiraling inward and shrinking, was initially applied in China to students and young workers, who felt they were caught up in meaningless competition that led nowhere as the job market weakened and wages stagnated in recent years. At the industry level, it has come to mean sectors that have too many companies competing for a slice of the pie, leading to fierce price cutting to try to gain market share. The mismatch between production capacity — how much an industry can make — and actual demand for the product, reflects overcapacity that forces companies to compete for survival in a limited market space, said a recent article in the Communist Party magazine Qiushi. Obstacles to fixing the problem Some Chinese industries, especially steel and cement, have long suffered from overcapacity. A government push to promote green industries has fostered similar problems in that sector, including solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicles. A flood of Chinese exports is leading to more trade barriers in Europe and the U.S. and in some emerging markets such as Mexico, Indonesia and India. Ultimately, economists say industries need to consolidate through company mergers and bankruptcies. But the process will take time. A major obstacle is provincial governments that want to protect local companies and jobs. Alicia García-Herrero, the chief economist for Asia-Pacific at the Natixis investment bank, said that recent comments by top Chinese economic officials suggest they realize something needs to be done. 'How much is action versus words, I don't know,' she said. 'But I do think it's a big problem for China.'
