FOOTAGE taken from a drone shot down by Ukrainian forces appears to show Chinese engineers testing the camera – exposing Xi Jinping’s role in Putin’s war.
The unbelievable gaff appears to reveal China‘s role in building the deadly Russian drone fleets that Putin is using to target civilians in Ukraine.
Footage from a downed drone recovered by Ukraine appears to show it being tested in China[/caption]
Experts say the video shows Chinese engineers filming the Beihuan Highway in Shenzhen[/caption]
The drone’s camera then pans back to an office[/caption]
Although Beijing has repeatedly denied involvement, China has long been suspected of aiding Putin in his brutal and illegal invasion of Ukraine.
But this is the first time that Ukrainian technicians have apparently discovered evidence of China’s complicity in the construction of the Iranian-designed aerial assault vehicle.
Ukrainian troops cracked open a Russian-used war drone only to find videos filmed in China on the hard drive.
Experts say the video shows Chinese engineers filming the Beihuan Highway in Shenzhen to test the targeting capabilities of the camera that was later fitted to a suicide drone.
Manufactured by ViewPro, a Shenzhen-based Chinese company, the A40 Pro camera is programmed to use AI to track and select targets.
With its 360-degree rotation and powerful 40x zoom, it gives Russian operators the ability to prey on women and children with sickening accuracy.
Speaking to The Sun, a senior Ukrainian commander said it was “no surprise at all” that China was involved in manufacturing components for Russian weapons systems.
He said: “We know that Chinese tech is much more advanced than Russian tech.
“The question is, are sanctions biting, or is Moscow actively upgrading its drone fleets?”
“At the end of the day, China and Russia are not friends.
“They’re only helping Russia to weaken the influence of the USA and their defence of Taiwan.
“Xi is an altogether more credible opponent than Putin. He’s a master at playing the long game.
“There is close to zero military planning by the enemy [Russia].
“They have given up on that. It’s just based on misery, on the killing of innocents, and Chinese technology makes them better at that.”
Moscow’s unrelenting attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine have seen more than 50,000 fixed-wing kamikaze drones fired from Russia – many of them Shaheds.
They have contributed significantly to the 14,000 innocent non-combatants murdered in the Kremlin’s ‘Special Military Operation’.
The footage from Shenzhen, China, was leaked by drone specialist Serhii ‘Flash’ Beskrestnov.
His Telegram channel is followed by many within the Armed Forces of Ukraine – as well as outside observers and figures from the global drone industry.
Although he’s a civilian, Flash has proved to be a knowledgeable and well-connected source for technical information and data regarding drones and drone warfare.
While the fighting in Ukraine remains a grim and grinding war of attrition, drone warfare has emerged as the defining characteristic of the conflict.
Drones are thought to be responsible for more than 75 per cent of injuries to Russian soldiers in the war.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto (far left), Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Beijing[/caption]
A cargo truck burns inside a warehouse after a Russian drone strike in Odesa, Ukraine[/caption]
Ukrainian soldiers fire from their artillery position in the direction of Toretsk[/caption]
Both sides have invested heavily in drone technology and the training of pilots and engineers to keep pace with a dynamic and rapidly-evolving conflict.
Although combat drones tend to be small, multirotor units, Russia uses its large, fixed-wing drones to attack cities and civilians, despite these assaults being war crimes under the Geneva Conventions.
To add to the chaos suffered by civilians in the indiscriminate Russian attacks, the Kremlin’s forces will often fire armadas of ballistic missiles alongside drones.
Long range attacks by Iskander and Kinzhal missiles are often responsible for the most severe damage.
But many areas of Ukraine lack the advanced surface-to-air missile batteries required to shoot them down.
In addition to suicide drones and ballistic missiles, Russia launches decoy drones in an attempt to draw the fire of defensive forces.
Despite these measures, Ukraine says it has a high hit rate, destroying nearly 90 per cent of aerial weapons fired by Moscow’s forces before they reach their targets.
Ukraine has announced that it intends to buy and produce more than 4.5 million drones this year, quadruple the number it purchased or produced in 2024.
Russia’s target for drone production in 2025 is 3 to 4 million – but Moscow is subject to sweeping sanctions designed to hinder its production of weapons.
Chinese soldiers fighting for Russia captured
TWO Chinese soldiers were captured fighting alongside the Russians in Ukraine in April.
Kyiv found six Chinese nationals fighting in the Donetsk region of Ukraine and took two of them prisoners.
Zelensky claimed Ukraine had information about more Chinese citizens fighting with the Russian troops and demanded an official response from Beijing.
He said: “Our military captured two Chinese citizens who fought in the Russian army. This happened on the territory of Ukraine – in the Donetsk region.
“There are documents of these prisoners, bank cards, personal data.
“We have information that there are significantly more such Chinese citizens in the units of the occupier than two.”
The Chinese soldiers were held by the Security Service of Ukraine.
In an interview footage, one of the captured Chinese nationals appeared to mimic drones flying overhead.
At the time, Zelensky said that China’s involvement in the war is a “clear signal” that Putin wants to drag out the war.
Wide-ranging sanctions have meant Russia is scrambling to source key electronic components for their fleets of suicide drones – with Russian engineers resorting to gutting washing machines and fridges.
The most in-demand components denied to Russia by international sanctions are processing chips – with everything from games consoles to ice-makers containing the electrical elements that a skilled engineer can strip to power Russia’s terrifying fleet of drones.
And despite sanctions, Ukrainian engineers continue to find chips manufactured in the US and elsewhere by firms such as Intel and Texas Instruments – meaning Russia is being supplied by allies, including tech heavyweights such as China and India.
Putin this week travelled to China to meet President Xi, alongside the so-called “Axis of Upheaval”, including Narendra Modi of India, Iranian leaders, and North Korea’s tyrant, Kim Jong-Un.
Evidence that China has been directly supporting Putin’s war against Ukraine has been speculative – until now.
The emergence of footage from China in tactical drones launched from Russia leaves no doubt which side Xi Jinping has thrown his support behind.
Although it remains to be seen if China will follow North Korea in sending troops to support Vlad, Ukrainian troops have captured a number of Chinese citizens who have travelled to Russia to enlist in the Kremlin’s blood-soaked war.
Beyond purchasing oil and gas from Russia, China and India are suspected to be directly supplying Moscow with weapons.