Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Kyiv has for the first time captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia on the front lines. For more on the significance of this development, TaiwanPlus spoke to Stephen Nagy from International Christian University in Tokyo.
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00:00What does Ukraine capturing two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia signal to the world?
00:05We don't know if these were recruited by the Russian government or if they're hired hands or mercenaries being hired by the Russian government to, again, provide support to Russian soldiers.
00:19But what it does suggest is that there is a segment of Chinese society, however small, that's interested in supporting Russia's efforts to defeat Ukraine and also suggests that there is some facilitation by the Chinese government in terms of allowing its citizens to participate in the war, in Russia's war against Ukraine.
00:44Could the presence of Chinese soldiers on the Russian side strain China-Russia relations?
00:50So up to now, there's been substantial evidence suggesting that China has not provided direct military support to Russia, but has provided assets and machinery and equipment via third countries to support the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
01:08We haven't had strong evidence until now that actual Chinese nationals are supporting Russia in aggression towards Ukraine.
01:19What it means for Russia-China relations at this stage is pretty difficult to say, but it does mean that, again, there's a segment of Chinese society that believes in Russia's war against Ukraine and in some of the broader initiatives.
01:37It could also mean that there is some sentiment in China for a similar action when it comes to cross-strait relations and the challenges associated with Taiwan-China relations.
01:51How might the Global South react to Chinese nations taking a bombs from Moscow?
01:55Well, within the Global South or developing countries, there's a strong sense that China has not been a direct participant in Russia's war of aggression.
02:05But at the same time, I do believe that those third countries that China has been using to export machinery and other equipment to support the Russian war efforts are very conscious that China is leveraging the war to gain benefit economically,
02:24but also to strengthen its growingly asymmetric relationship with Russia.
02:29What does this mean moving forward?
02:32It likely means that there'll be more evidence in Western countries that China is involved in the war indirectly, that it's not an impartial player when it comes to finding peace and supporting peace.