Ukraine has accused China of supporting Russia's arms industry. China, however, has always denied the accusation. The Asian superpower claims to be neutral on the war in Ukraine.
Al Jazeera reported on Monday that Ukraine has alleged that China is directly supporting Russia's military industry, citing Oleh Ivashchenko, the head of Kiev's foreign intelligence service.
In an interview published on Monday by Ukraine's state news agency Ukrainform, Ivashchenko said, "We have concrete evidence that China is supplying important equipment and raw materials to at least 20 Russian military factories."
China, however, has always denied this accusation. It claims to be neutral in the Ukraine war and is not providing military assistance to any side. However, Ukraine says that China is actually supporting Russia in the war.
According to Ivashchenko, China is sending machine-building equipment, special chemicals, gunpowder, and components used for Russian military production plants.
Russia said its massive airstrikes in Ukraine in recent days were a response to an increase in Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian civilians, AFP reported, accusing Kiev of undermining peace efforts.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that Kiev had taken a series of provocative actions to thwart talks initiated by Russia with the support of some European countries.
Moscow launched hundreds of drones into Ukraine between late Friday and early Monday, killing scores of people and knocking out the country's air defenses. US President Donald Trump said Vladimir Putin had gone "absolutely insane" and threatened sanctions on Russia for the attack.
