President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed Ukrainian armed forces captured two Chinese nationals who were fighting as part of the Russian Army in Ukraine's Donetsk region and called on Kyiv's allies to react to the situation and demand an explanation from Beijing.
In a message posted on his Telegram channel on April 8, Zelenskyy alleged the two Chinese citizens were captured during a battle that involved several other Chinese soldiers, all of whom were fighting as part of the Russian army in Donetsk.
Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Beijing has become a close ally. But it has positioned itself as neutral in the conflict -- Beijing has shopped its own peace plans to end the conflict -- and is not publicly known to have directly aided the Kremlin in its war.
In an exclusive report in February, RFE/RL identified through a leaked Russian Defense Ministry database the name of a Chinese national who said he fought for Russia, though he declined to give further details.
"We have the documents of these prisoners, bank cards, and personal data," Zelenskyy said on Telegram that included images of one of the alleged captured Chinese soldiers.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has yet to comment publicly on the claim by Zelenskyy, who did not give details or say who was commanding the soldiers.
US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the report that Chinese soldiers had been captured in Ukraine was "disturbing."
"China is a major enabler of Russia in the war in Ukraine. China provides nearly 80 percent of the dual use items Russia needs to sustain the war," she said.
Zelenskyy said preliminary intelligence suggests more Chinese nationals are present within Russian military units operating in Ukraine and that the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and relevant military units are "actively working" to confirm the extent of Chinese involvement in the war.
The captured Chinese citizens are currently in the custody of the SBU, and investigative and operational procedures are under way.
"Russia's involvement of China, along with other countries, whether directly or indirectly, in this war in Europe is a clear signal that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin intends to do anything but end the war," Zelenskyy wrote.
Zelenskyy Confirms Troops In Russia's Belgorod
The claim came just hours after Zelenskyy acknowledged publicly for the first time that Ukrainian troops are holding positions inside Russia's Belgorod region as Ukraine continued to mark the deaths of several children killed in a Russian air attack last week.
Funeral services were held in the Ukrainian city of Kryviy Rih on April 8 for a 3-year-old boy named Timofiy and a 7-year-old girl named Arina, two of the 20 victims -- nine of whom were children -- in the attack. The ages of the dead ranged from 3 to 79.
Mourners filed up church stairs and past portraits of the two children as bells rang out across Zelenskyy's hometown after what Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul called the deadliest strike so far on the city in the course of Russia's three-year war on Ukraine.
Zelenskyy has called for international pressure and stronger measures to discourage Moscow from continuing such attacks.
Ukrainian officials said the missile used cluster munition to maximize casualties to people on the ground, in "a reckless disregard for civilian life," according to UN human rights chief Volker Turk.
In a nightly address, Zelenskyy also noted a report from Oleksandr Syrskiy, Ukraine's top commander, "on the front line, our presence in the Kursk region and our presence in the Belgorod region."
"We continue active operations in the enemy's border areas and this is absolutely justified. The war must return to where it came from.... Our main objective remains the same: to protect our land and our communities in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions from Russian occupiers," he added.
Zelenskyy, who previously had not publicly commented on such operations inside Russia, lauded Ukraine's 225th Assault Regiment for its performance in the region.
Russian military bloggers had reported battles in Belgorod region between Russian and Ukrainian troops.
Moscow claimed after the Kryviy Rih attack that "no strikes are carried out on social facilities and social infrastructure," reiterating its long-stated response to allegations from Ukrainian officials that the attack constituted a war crime.
Eyewitness accounts, official statements, public records, and other open-source materials reviewed by Systema, RFE/RL's Russian-language investigative unit, however, show that the restaurant the Russian military says it targeted because it was hosting a meeting of military units and foreign advisers was actually the site of a beauty industry forum and a birthday party.
Russia has denied firing on civilian infrastructure despite daily documented attacks in cities all over Ukraine. The attacks have escalated in scope since the White House began pressuring Russia to agree to a cease-fire with Ukraine in March.
Ukraine agreed to accept a US proposal for an initial 30-day cease-fire, following talks in Saudi Arabia, while Russia has said it is still studying the proposal.
Moscow and Washington have also announced a deal to limit military activity in the Black Sea region.
However, Ukrainian and Russian forces have continued to fire drones and missiles at one another, almost nightly.
