Ukraine announced on Wednesday (July 9) that they have detained two Chinese citizens on suspicion of collecting confidential military technology related to Ukraine’s “Neptune” anti-ship missile for the Chinese Communist Party.
The “Neptune” anti-ship missile is an important part of Ukraine’s growing domestic defense industry, crucial for Ukraine’s defense against Russian invasion.
According to a statement by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), one of the suspects is 24 years old and used to be a student at a technical university in Kyiv. After being expelled from the university in 2023 due to poor academic performance, he stayed in Ukraine. The other suspect is his father, who resides in China but regularly visits Ukraine to “personally coordinate” his son’s espionage activities. They are accused of collecting secret documents and attempting to illegally transfer them to the Chinese intelligence department.
The former Chinese student in this case tried to obtain technical documents for the production of the Ukrainian RK-360MC “Neptune” missile system. To achieve this goal, he attempted to recruit a Ukrainian citizen involved in the latest weapons research and development for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
At the initial stage of engaging in intelligence activities, the former Chinese student was discovered by the counterintelligence department of the Ukrainian Security Service. The Ukrainian counterintelligence department conducted a sting operation and detained him “on the spot” while he was passing on the secret documents. The Security Service later detained the father of the Chinese student, who was supposed to pass on the confidential information to the Chinese special agent department.
During the search process, law enforcement officers confiscated the mobile phones of the two suspects, which contained evidence of their communication with each other. These communication records indicate their coordination of espionage activities.
Both suspects are charged with espionage.
If convicted, they could face up to 15 years in prison and property confiscation.
A Ukrainian official told Reuters that these two men are the first batch of Chinese spies to be arrested since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The “Neptune” missile in Ukraine was used in the early months of the Russia-Ukraine war to destroy the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and has since been used to attack other targets, including Russian oil terminals.
Ukrainian President Zelensky has repeatedly accused China of supporting Russia and on July 8 signed a decree imposing sanctions on five Chinese-registered companies for allegedly supplying parts for the Russian “Shahed” unmanned aerial vehicles used in attacks on Ukraine.
Ukraine had previously sanctioned three Chinese companies in April this year, but China denies providing weapons to Russia. Ukraine also stated that they have captured two Chinese citizens fighting for the Russian army on the battlefield.