- The United States has warned its allies that China is providing geospatial intelligence to Russia.
- China and Russia have grown closer in recent years, having declared “unrestricted” friendship in 2022.
- The United States has warned of “serious consequences” if Chinese companies support Russia's war effort.
The United States has warned its allies that China's technical assistance to Russia's war effort against Ukraine is increasing.
As military cooperation between the two countries increases, China provides geospatial satellite imagery to Russia for military use.
The news comes a month after a report from the London-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) warned that Russia was increasing cooperation with China on 5G and satellite technology. .
Geospatial intelligence integrates data from a network of technologies, from satellites to mobile sensors, ground control stations, and aerial imagery. The data will be used to create real-time maps and simulations to help identify military threats, the European Union Satellite Center said.
Chinese aid will also include microelectronics and machine tools for tank production, optical equipment, missile fuel and expanded space cooperation, according to sources interviewed by Bloomberg.
Satellite imagery has played an important role for both sides in the Ukraine war.
In October 2022, Russia said commercial satellites used by the United States to support Ukraine's war against Russia were “legitimate” targets.
Privately owned assets such as Elon Musk's Starlink satellite terminal and Maxar & Planet Labs' Earth observation satellites have proven important in keeping Ukrainians online.
But in recent months, Ukraine has criticized Musk for failing to prevent Russia from using Starlink terminals in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
“Unlimited” relations between China and Moscow
Chinese Prime Minister Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin mentioned their mutual relationship In 2022, as an “unlimited” friendship.
Trade between the two countries will reach a peak value of $240 billion in 2023, according to Chinese customs data, making China the largest supplier of goods to Russia since Western companies withdrew from the Russian market after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. They became one.
China also provides Moscow with access to limited “dual-use” products such as chips and integrated circuits that can be used to make weapons.
In return, Russia exported large amounts of oil and coal to its neighbors at discounted prices.
This time last year, China's ambassador to the European Union, Hu Kong, downplayed Russia-China cooperation in an interview with the New York Times.
Despite China refusing to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Fu said at the time that his country was not on Russia's side in the war and that China-Russia relations were “deliberately misunderstood”. added.
But Bloomberg's sources say China's support for Russia has only increased in recent months.
The Financial Times reported this week that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken briefed European allies on the scope of China's aid to Russia and the need for more efforts to stop it. Blinken reportedly urged allies to raise the issue directly with China.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also warned this week of “serious consequences” if companies, including Chinese ones, assist Russia in its war effort against Ukraine.
“We have made it very clear to China that we see Russia as being supported by the products that Chinese companies are supplying to Russia,” Yellen said on Saturday.
“The Chinese side emphasized that it is China's policy not to provide military assistance to Russia. Neither country wants this to become an issue in bilateral relations.”
US President Joe Biden directly expressed concerns to the Chinese side regarding China's support to Russia's defense sector in a recent telephone conversation.
The phone call between Biden and Xi was the first one-on-one communication since the two leaders met in California last November and agreed to “continue to communicate more regularly.”