Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

What We're Watching

Ukraine accuses Russia of  recruiting Chinese fighters

Ukraine accuses Russia of  recruiting Chinese fighters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a news conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 8, 2025.

Danylo Antoniuk/Ukrinform/NurPhoto
Make us preferred on Google

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says at least 155 Chinese citizens are fighting for Russia in Ukraine and there are probably “many more.”

China’s foreign ministry responded that the country “has always required its citizens to … avoid being involved in armed conflicts in any form.”


Zelensky isn’t claiming the Chinese government sent these troops. Rather, he says the Kremlin is recruiting Chinese mercenaries on social media in what he described on X as “yet another indication that Moscow simply needs to drag out the fighting.”

China on the spot. Even if the Chinese fighters have no official ties, their presence throws a fresh light on what, exactly, Beijing’s role is in the war. China doesn’t recognize Moscow’s claims on Ukraine, but the US has long accused it of helping Russia with weapons and “dual-use” technologies like computer chips and drones. Beijing also continues to buy Russian oil.

Beijing said Thursday it is a “staunch supporter” of a “peaceful resolution” to the war. Now, amid signs of a detente between China and Europe, China’s stance on Ukraine will be one to watch.

More For You

October 28, 2026, Anchorage, Alaska, USA: The Alaska State offical sample ballot shows where there are 2 Daniel Sullivans running for Alaska's Senate seat. One is Daniel J, Sullivan (called decoy Dan) and the other is the incumbant Daniel S. Sullivan.

October 28, 2026, Anchorage, Alaska, USA: The Alaska State offical sample ballot shows where there are 2 Daniel Sullivans running for Alaska's Senate seat. One is Daniel J, Sullivan (called decoy Dan) and the other is the incumbant Daniel S. Sullivan.

ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect
Alaska Democrat’s election shenanigans cast doubt over midtermsAlaska has launched a criminal probe into Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign after The Times revealed a plan to recruit people with the same name as her Republican opponent, incumbent Dan Sullivan, to run for office and confuse voters. The ballot for next Tuesday’s [...]
Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro disembarks from a plane after arriving at Opa-locka Executive Airport near Miami, Florida, U.S., October 28, 2026.

Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro disembarks from a plane after arriving at Opa-locka Executive Airport near Miami, Florida, U.S., October 28, 2026.

REUTERS/Eva Marie Uzcategui
Brazil’s Bolsonaro Jr flees to the US after election lossBem-vindo a Miami! Flávio Bolsonaro, the right-winger who lost Brazil’s presidential runoff to incumbent lefty Lula on Sunday, landed in the Magic City with his family on Wednesday morning. Bolsonaro, who is under investigation for money laundering in Brazil, fled after Brazilian police [...]
Representatives of secondary school pupils organisations Les Lyceens vice-president Louis Letoublon (3rd L), Renouveau Lycee president Nathanael Combary (2nd R), Renouveau Lycee Monica-Shannon Ongmilan (L), and Bordeaux Academy representative to the National Council for High School Life Elliot Hostin (R), speak to the press as they leave the Hotel Matignon after a meeting with French Prime Minister on October 26, 2026

Representatives of secondary school pupils organisations Les Lyceens vice-president Louis Letoublon (3rd L), Renouveau Lycee president Nathanael Combary (2nd R), Renouveau Lycee Monica-Shannon Ongmilan (L), and Bordeaux Academy representative to the National Council for High School Life Elliot Hostin (R), speak to the press as they leave the Hotel Matignon after a meeting with French Prime Minister on October 26, 2026

Paoloni Jeremy/ABACA via Reuters Connect
France offers concessions to protestersAfter weeks of student-led protests over poor conditions in French schools, the government has promised to dedicate €4 billion ($4.5 billion) to school renovations, improve teaching, implement other education reforms, and to replace its controversial university admissions platform by 2028. But while [...]
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado greets supporters after travelling from Barquisimeto, where she made her first public appearance following her return to the country after nearly a year abroad, in Caracas, Venezuela, October 25, 2026.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado greets supporters after travelling from Barquisimeto, where she made her first public appearance following her return to the country after nearly a year abroad, in Caracas, Venezuela, October 25, 2026.

REUTERS/Gaby Oraa
Venezuela’s leading opposition figure returns homeAfter ten months in exile, Maria Corina Machado is back in Venezuela. Until now she has been largely sidelined by the Trump administration, which ousted strongman Nicolás Maduro in January and installed his deputy, Delcy Rodríguez, instead. Machado wants elections by July, and polls show she is the [...]