Wang Guangjun, one of two Chinese fighters captured by Ukrainian forces in early April 2025. [SBU/SSU]

Ukrainian intelligence documents indicate at least 163 Chinese nationals have been fighting alongside Russian troops in Ukraine, and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says there are likely more.

The Kyiv Independent newspaper reviewed two documents, including one with photos, passport details and other information on 155 Chinese fighters. Another document detailed 13 Chinese recruits selected for service in the Russian army as of April 2, 2025.

U.S. intelligence sources told Reuters the fighters are mercenaries who don’t appear to have a direct link to China’s government. Beijing has always denied any direct Chinese involvement in the war since Russian forces invaded in February 2022.

“There are 155 Chinese citizens who are fighting against Ukrainians on the territory of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy told journalists on April 9, 2025, the day after Ukrainian forces captured two Chinese fighters. “We are collecting information, we believe that there are many more.”

Besides photos and passport details, the documents reflect contracts dating into 2024. They include other personal data, place of service and position in units of the Russian army, the 70th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade and 255th Rifle Division among them.

“There are 155 Chinese citizens who are fighting against Ukrainians on the territory of Ukraine.”
—Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

The two Chinese, captured after a group of six Chinese nationals clashed with Ukrainian forces in eastern Donetsk Oblast, were identified as Wang Guangjun and Zhang Renbo. They were born in 1991 and 1998 and were being held by the Security Service of Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said the pair had been recruited via Russian-distributed advertisements, including on social media such as Douyin, China’s local version of TikTok. One of the captives said he paid 300,000 rubles (about C$5,000) to a middleman in China to join the Russian military in exchange for a promise of citizenship, Ukraine’s Luhansk military unit press service told Ukrainian Pravda.

Zelenskyy instructed Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha to contact Beijing. Ukraine summoned China’s chargé d’affaires to demand an official explanation and express condemnation.

“We record that these are Chinese citizens, they are fighting against us, using weapons against Ukrainians on the territory of Ukraine,” the president said.

Wang said he paid about C$4,200 to join the Russian military through an intermediary in China with the promise of Russian citizenship.
[SBU/SSU]

Beijing and Moscow initially said they were “verifying” the claims. Chinese officials reiterated that their citizens are prohibited from participating in foreign armed conflicts.

Lin Jian, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, followed up, saying the claims that many Chinese citizens are fighting in Ukraine were “groundless.”

“It is important to emphasize that the Chinese government has always instructed its citizens to stay away from areas of armed conflict and avoid getting involved in the conflict in any form, especially avoiding participation in any party’s military operations,” Lin said.

Zelenskyy wasn’t buying it. Quoting a “former Western intelligence official,” Reuters reported that Chinese military officers have been operating in-theatre behind Russian lines with Beijing’s approval to draw tactical lessons from the war.

The source told the news agency there were about 200 Chinese mercenaries fighting for Russia with whom the Chinese government has no link.

“These people arrive to the Russian Federation, to Moscow,” said Zelenskyy. “Medical examinations last three to four days. Training centres are for one to two months. They fight on the territory of Ukraine.”

“It is important to emphasize that the Chinese government has always instructed its citizens to stay away from areas of armed conflict.”
—Lin Jian, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs

He was asked if he thought the Chinese nationals’ presence in Ukraine was linked to official Beijing policy.

“I don’t have an answer to this question yet,” he said. “The Security Service of Ukraine will work on it.… We are not saying that someone gave any command, we do not have such information.”

But he called their presence further proof that Moscow isn’t seeking peace and continues to draw support from countries such as China, Iran and North Korea.

China has been providing Moscow with materiel support for much of the war, primarily in the shipment of dual-use products—components needed to maintain weapons such as drones and tanks.

North Korea sent about 12,000 troops to Russia’s Kursk Oblast in 2024 to reinforce Russian lines after Ukrainian forces launched a cross-border offensive. Kyiv captured two North Korean soldiers in January 2025 and estimated at the time that it had inflicted 4,000 casualties among the deployed units. Described by some as cannon fodder, the North Koreans are said to have suffered massive losses in suicide-like charges.

Canadian, American and British fighters are among hundreds of international volunteers—some believed to have been recruited by Ukrainian embassies and consulates—who have made their way to Ukraine to fight alongside Zelenskyy’s troops.

This image taken from video that European military officials say was filmed by a Ukrainian drone in the southern Ukrainian village of Piatykhatky on March 13, 2025, shows three soldiers with red helmets and uniform markings identified as Russian surrounding four Ukrainian soldiers who appear to have surrendered and are lying on the ground. The video indicates they were all shot. [Ukraine Military/European Defence Officials]

Wang said he was flipping through TikTok when he saw an advertisement to join the Russian army. He had lost his job last summer, and was interested in the offer, especially since, he said, military service is seen as “prestigious” in China.

A recruiter subsequently told him that a Chinese recruit could earn 200,000 to 250,000 Russian rubles (C$3,400-$4,200) a month in the Russian army—higher than the average salary in China. He said the recruiter also promised to cover his travel to Russia and help him obtain the necessary documents.

But this failed to materialize, he said, adding the Russians later took away his bank card and phone, so that he couldn’t manage the money he was making.

The other captive, Zhang, said he came from a wealthy family and worked as a firefighter and rescuer. He said he came to Russia in December and was initially offered a job in construction. He was eventually recruited for military service.

“I wanted to make money, but I did not expect to end up in the war.”

Both men claimed they had no connection to the Chinese government and that they signed a contract with the Russian army of their own free will.

Their routes passed through Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, and Russian-occupied Donetsk in eastern Ukraine before reaching the battlefield. Wang said he was placed in the camp with people of other nationalities, apparently from central Asia, Ghana and Iraq.

Wang said he was targeted by Russian “chemical weapons” soon after he was taken captive by a Ukrainian soldier. “I was losing my strength and fainting,” he said. “Then I felt someone grabbing my collar and pulling me out into the fresh air.”

Wang said the Ukrainian helped him survive what he described as a “spray gas” attack.

Ukrainian “soldiers protected us and have been treating us well this whole time.”

CNN reported that at least one of the detainees appeared to be speaking under duress.

Around the time of their capture, video from Russian and Ukrainian drones was released showing Russian troops shooting four surrendering Ukrainian soldiers in the back. The Ukrainian video (see above) shows the killings; the Russian one is edited to omit the firing of weapons. The incident occurred March 13, 2025.

“Out of all the executions that we’ve seen since late 2023, it’s one of the clearest cases,” said Rollo Collins of the Centre for Information Resilience, a London group specializing in visual investigations. “This is not a typical combat killing. This is an illegal action.”

Ukrainian prosecutors, international human rights officials and open-source analysts told The Associated Press the killing of surrendering prisoners of war is not unique. At least 245 Ukrainian PoWs have been executed by Russian forces since the full-scale invasion, said Ukrainian prosecutors, who claim it’s part of a deliberate strategy encouraged by Russian authorities. Russia denied it, and claimed the Ukrainian video was faked.

“This is not a typical combat killing. This is an illegal action.”
—Rollo Collins, Centre for Information Resilience

AP reported that Ukrainian authorities fear the U.S. push for a quick peace deal, the withdrawal of some American support including for war crimes investigations, and apparent warm relations between presidents Trump and Putin will “make it more difficult to establish a firm historical narrative about what has happened since Russia’s 2022 invasion and whether those most responsible for atrocities will ever be held accountable.”

“Whatever a peace agreement would be, Ukraine is not ready to forgive everything which happened in our territory,” said Yurii Bielousov, head of the war crimes department for Ukraine’s prosecutor general. “In which form there will be accountability, that we don’t know at the moment.”