Despite China's public calls for peace over the past year, the country has actively increased its trade of dual-use goods with Russia, assisting Moscow in importing sanctioned Western technologies and other things.

According to customs records obtained by Politico, Russian buyers have declared orders for hundreds of thousands of bulletproof vests and helmets made by Shanghai H Win — the items listed in the documents match those in the company’s online catalog.

Additionally, Russia has imported more than $100 million-worth of drones from China so far this year — 30 times more than Ukraine. Chinese exports of ceramics, a component used in body armour, increased by 69% to Russia to more than $225 million, while dropping by 61% to Ukraine to a mere $5 million, Chinese and Ukrainian customs data show.

The import of Chinese dual-use goods to Russia often occurs through shell companies created to conceal the trade activity. For example, one such company Silva is headquartered in the remote Eastern Siberian region of Buryatia. It filed declarations in January of this year detailing orders for 100,000 bulletproof vests and 100,000 helmets by Shanghai H Win.

Regarding drones, the Chinese manufacturer DJI claims to have severed ties with Russia and actively prevents the use of its products in combat operations.

However, Politico managed to find a contract between the Chinese company Iflight and Russia for the supply of DJI drones through another company in Hong Kong in October 2022.

The trafficking of low-tech body armour to high-tech drones and thermal optics highlights a vulnerability in the Western sanctions regime. The ambiguity surrounding the dual-use status of this equipment, coupled with the fact that a significant portion of it is manufactured in China, seems to have placed the possibility of the West taking meaningful action beyond reach.

Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron's advisor, Emmanuel Bonne, stated that France was aware that some facts could indicate certain Chinese assistance to Russia in its war against Ukraine.