Chinese drone experts have traveled to Russia to conduct technical development work on military drones at a sanctioned state-owned weapons manufacturer, according to two European security officials and documents reviewed by Reuters.
The Chinese specialists visited arms maker IEMZ Kupol on more than half a dozen occasions since the second quarter of last year. During the same period, Kupol received shipments of Chinese-made attack and surveillance drones through a Russian intermediary, the documents and officials show.
In September, Reuters documented that Kupol had developed the Garpiya-3 drone in China with local specialists’ assistance. The news agency now reports specific details of Chinese experts’ extensive involvement in tests and technological work on military-use drones inside Russia.
The collaboration suggests a deepening relationship between Kupol and Chinese companies in developing drones that have proven critically important to Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to the officials who requested anonymity due to the information’s sensitivity.
China’s foreign ministry said it was unaware of the collaboration.
“China has always maintained an objective and fair position on the question of the Ukraine crisis, never providing lethal weapons to any party in the conflict and strictly controlling dual-use items, including drone exports,” the ministry said.
China’s stance on the war in Ukraine is officially neutral. But it clearly supports maintaining Russian stability as a strategic priority to prevent US focus shifting fully to China. While China denies direct military aid, it has provided covert, strategic political backing and economic cooperation to Russia, including dual-use technology and drone components, effectively helping Russia sustain its war effort.
Drone shipments and technical support
Documents including business invoices and bank statements showed Kupol received more than a dozen one-way attack drones last year produced by Sichuan AEE, a Chinese drone maker. Russian defense procurement company TSK Vektor, which operates under US and EU sanctions, supplied the drones, according to officials and documents. Neither TSK Vektor nor Sichuan AEE responded to comment requests.
A letter from TSK Vektor to Kupol showed the procurement company billed the weapons manufacturer for more than half a dozen AEE-produced drones in the second quarter of 2024. An AEE corporate document confirmed delivery of A140 and A900 one-way attack drones and listed A60, A100 and A200 models for future delivery.
Kupol reports describe flight tests of A60, A100 and A200 drones at the Chebarkul military test site in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region during the last quarter of 2024. Chinese experts visited Kupol’s facilities in Izhevsk to assemble drones and train staff, then traveled to Chebarkul for the tests, according to a Kupol document. Airline bookings showed the Chinese experts flew out of Chelyabinsk the day after testing concluded.
Expanding production capabilities
The documents described Chinese experts as TSK Vektor employees, though European officials assessed they were AEE staff based on AEE’s response to A200 drone test flight feedback, which referenced information from AEE technicians.
AEE subsequently billed TSK Vektor more than 5 million yuan ($700,000) for several A200s equipped with anti-jamming equipment and other goods in the second quarter of 2025, according to an invoice and account statement.
Samuel Bendett, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said China had become vital to Russia’s military supply chain.
“There is just such an enormous role and influence and impact of Chinese components in Russian military systems…especially in aerial drones,” Bendett said.
Second Chinese company involvement
A flight test report approved by Kupol and TSK Vektor assessed performance of an HW52V drone made by Chinese firm Hunan Haotianyi in the third quarter of last year. The HW52V is a vertical take-off and landing drone usable for military intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and strikes, European security officials said.
Air tickets showed Liu Mingxing, Hunan Haotianyi’s CEO, and Artem Vysotksy, head of TSK Vektor’s drone department, flew from Irkutsk airport in adjacent seats following a drone display event in June. Neither Hunan Haotianyi nor TSK Vektor responded to comment requests.
A separate Kupol document from the third quarter described visits by Chinese citizens including engineers and technical staff identified as TSK Vektor employees. European officials assessed these were Hunan Haotianyi staff because several experts who visited Kupol had accompanied the company’s CEO during his Russia trip.
The third-quarter visit aimed to adapt a new Chinese flight control computer and engine for the Garpiya, the document stated. Additional letters described over half a dozen week-long visits by Chinese and Russian experts in 2024 and 2025 for flight control computer work.
A final letter describing a third-quarter 2025 visit by Chinese experts said they would work on a new drone called the GA-21. European officials assess the GA-21 is a version of Iran’s Shahed-107, usable for surveillance or attacks.
Reuters previously reported in July that Kupol was producing thousands of Garpiya one-way attack drones using Chinese parts including engines. The Garpiyas, modeled on Iran’s Shahed drone, can fly hundreds of miles to pre-programmed targets before exploding on impact. Kyiv reports around 500 are used monthly in Ukraine.