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WSJ: China Becomes Key Supplier of Drone Components for Russia’s War in Ukraine
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![Photo of Liubava Petriv]( "Photo of Liubava Petriv")
China has emerged as a key external supplier of components used by Russia to manufacture drones and other weapons for its war against Ukraine, according to unpublished reports reviewed by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on October 30.
While Beijing insists it does not provide weapons to Moscow, it continues to allow exports of dual-use goods—items with both civilian and military applications. The reports indicate that Russian defense-linked firms have imported millions of drone motors and parts from Chinese companies, which are later used in strikes on Ukrainian cities and troops.
One report by Kyiv’s Center for Defense Reforms, a think tank founded by former intelligence and defense officials, found that in 2024 Russia purchased more than 3.3 million motors from Shenzhen Kiosk Electronic. Although such motors can power household appliances like washing machines or scooters, their end user was Rustakt LLC, a Moscow-based manufacturer of FPV drones.
Registered just days before Russia’s full-scale invasion, Rustakt reported revenues of about $11 million in 2023, a twelvefold increase from the previous year. Despite being sanctioned by the European Union in December 2024 for supporting Russia’s military, the company continued purchasing from China.
Between July 2023 and February 2025, Rustakt imported nearly $294 million worth of Chinese goods—including $83 million in electric motors. The scale of these imports suggests Rustakt functions not only as a producer but also as a logistics hub for other Russian drone manufacturers, according to the report.
WSJ cites numerous similar cases, noting that China has become “the main external supplier of critical components such as engines and navigation systems” for Shahed-type drones, which Russia uses in mass attacks on Ukrainian cities. Since mid-2024, Ukraine’s Air Force reports, Russia has repeatedly launched over 500 drones in a single night, including 653 on October 30.
In response, Washington imposed sanctions in February 2024 on several entities linked to the drone factory in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone. Yet between June and August that year, another Chinese supplier shipped over 685,000 engine components to Drake LLC, a Russian company that provides parts for Alabuga’s drone production. The EU later sanctioned Drake in December 2024.
A third Russian company, Morgan LLC, has imported nearly $5 million in Chinese components since 2024, including 7,800 lithium-polymer batteries described in customs documents as “for the needs of the special military operation,” the report says.
On the same day, US President Donald Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed to “work together to help end the war in Ukraine,” following talks between the two leaders in South Korea.
