crosspostato da: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/39313413

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• Ukraine has arrested Chinese nationals on espionage charges and sanctioned Chinese companies, signaling a hardened stance toward Beijing due to its perceived support for Russia's war.
• Despite China's claims of neutrality, evidence suggests it is providing significant support to Russia, including dual-use technology and military systems, leading Ukraine to abandon hopes of Beijing brokering peace.
• The growing distance between Kyiv and Beijing is underscored by Ukraine's actions and the US-Ukraine agreement on critical minerals, though Ukraine continues to tread carefully due to China being its largest trading partner.

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From the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Beijing has claimed neutrality while buying up Russian oil and gas –- Moscow’s financial lifeline –- and supplying dual-use technology to its military. Kyiv, like many in the West, had hoped China would use its leverage over Russian President Vladimir Putin to press for peace.

That hope appears to be fading.

China, once content to provide components like microchips, is now believed to be delivering entire systems. In May, pro-Russian Telegram channels claimed Moscow was using a new Chinese laser weapon to shoot down Ukrainian drones.

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Meanwhile, Beijing has been welcoming officials from Ukraine’s occupied territories at trade shows while Chinese companies have been selling heavy equipment to Russian companies operating in those territories.

The shift in Beijing’s behavior comes amid reports that China is no longer even pretending to be neutral.

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“I think there has been a certain evolution,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, chair of the Ukrainian parliament’s foreign affairs committee.

“At the very beginning, there was some hope China could be involved in the [peace] process. But now we’ve become more realistic and speak more openly: China supports Russia.”

Beijing declined an invitation to attend the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland last year, which drew representatives from more than 100 nations and organizations.

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For now, Ukraine isn’t severing ties, but the illusion of China’s neutrality has evaporated in Kyiv.