A Chinese state-owned firm was found shipping 46 tons of drone-making material to Russia

China shipped 46 tons of drone material to a sanctioned Russian firm The shipment was hidden on paper under a civilian customs code Alabuga-Volokno sends 89% of its output straight to Russian defense firms Internal shipping records reviewed by the US and UK governments revealed that a Chinese state-

<![CDATA[ <article> <ul><li><strong>China shipped 46 tons of drone material to a sanctioned Russian firm</strong></li><li><strong>The shipment was hidden on paper under a civilian customs code</strong></li><li><strong>Alabuga-Volokno sends 89% of its output straight to Russian defense firms</strong></li></ul><p>Internal shipping records reviewed by the US and UK governments revealed that a Chinese state-owned enterprise transferred 46 tons of carbon-fiber precursor material to a sanctioned Russian drone manufacturer earlier in 2026.</p><p>The documents describe two large containers moving between Jilin Chemical Fiber Group and Alabuga-Volokno, a subsidiary of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom.</p><p>Investigators say the cargo was logged under a customs code normally reserved for civilian synthetic fiber, obscuring its actual military use.</p><h2 id="a-disguised-customs-code">A disguised customs code</h2><p>Alabuga-Volokno makes 39 separate carbon-fiber products for aviation, rocket engineering, <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/drones/best-drone">drones</a>, shipbuilding, and armor.</p><p>The company barely releases any civilian products, as roughly 89% of its output is expected to serve Russian defense firms by 2030.</p><p>Weapons expert David Albright said using the correct shipping code would have flagged the shipment as a dual-use item with both civilian and defense applications.</p><p>Albright estimated the volume shipped could supply enough material for as many as 1,300 long-range attack drones.</p><p>Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre says it has tracked at least eight tenders for similar shipments between the two firms since 2022.</p><p>It claims that the sanctions have left Beijing as nearly the sole supplier of composite materials for Russian weapons manufacturing.</p><p>A Kiel Institute analysis found that China supplies more than 60% of the components sustaining Russia's military production.</p><p>Former deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell said dozens of Chinese firms now maintain deep ties to Moscow's defense sector in exchange for military technology transfers.</p><p>The disclosure arrives weeks before Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Xi Jinping in Washington, a summit both governments would likely prefer to focus on trade rather than sanctions enforcement.</p><h2 id="beijing-denies-any-wrongdoing">Beijing denies any wrongdoing </h2><p>China's embassy in Washington rejected the allegations, saying the country strictly controls dual-use goods and has never armed either side of the conflict.</p><p>Rosatom likewise disputed any wrongdoing tied to its subsidiary's customs filings.</p><p>“Rosatom and its enterprises operate in full compliance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements,” said a spokesperson for the Russian state firm.</p><p>“Any claim to the contrary is false and demonstrates a lack of understanding of how Russia’s customs authorities operate.”</p><p>Former U.S. officials remain skeptical of Beijing's denials, arguing that state-owned firms operate under close government oversight.</p><p>“They are doing it knowing that the Chinese government will not bust them for it,” said Dennis Wilder, former CIA deputy assistant director for East Asia and the Pacific.</p><p>“The idea that Chinese state-owned enterprises can hide things from the Chinese government just doesn’t wash.” </p><p>Chinese leader Xi Jinping has always maintained that China will not participate in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.</p><p>“We would not add fuel to the fire, and above all we would not profiteer,” Xi said in 2023.</p><p>Despite the denials from Beijing and Moscow, Ukraine argues that Chinese support keeps Russia's defense industry expanding production of drones and missile components.</p><p>Kyiv warned that continued shipments only strengthen ties between two of the West's strategic rivals, deepening cooperation across their industrial sectors.</p><p>Ukraine called for secondary sanctions, tighter export controls, financial pressure on intermediaries and closer coordination with Asian partners to counter these networks.</p><p>Via <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/china-state-firm-supplies-russia-materials-kamikaze-drones/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><em>Politico</em></a></p><figure class="van-image-figure inline-layout" data-bordeaux-image-check ><div class='image-full-width-wrapper'><div class='image-widthsetter' style="max-width:676px;"><p class="vanilla-image-block" style="padding-top:31.51%;"><img id="diM9tpwF2Lz85R8q85CT78" name="tr-g_news" alt="Google logo on a black background next to text reading 'Click to follow TechRadar'" src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/diM9tpwF2Lz85R8q85CT78-1920-80.jpg" mos="" align="middle" fullscreen="" width="676" height="213" attribution="" endorsement="" class="inline"></p></div></div></figure> </article> ]]>