Chinese-created aircraft engines are being covertly shipped to Russia disguised as “industrial refrigeration units,” powering a surge in Russian drone attacks in Ukraine, according to a Reuters investigation backed by documents and European security officials.
The engines, L550E models produced by Chinese company Xiamen Limbach Aviation Engine Co, are assisting Russia ramp up production of its Garpiya-A1 long-range drones, lethal weapons increasingly deployed deep inside Ukrainian territory.
Despite sanctions from the US and the European Union, the engines are reaching state-owned Russian drone creater IEMZ Kupol through front companies and intermediaries. Shipments were rerouted via a new Chinese firm, Beijing Xichao International Technology and Trade, after sanctions were imposed on Xiamen in October.
“Describing them as cooling units allowed the goods to be exported to Russia without alerting Chinese authorities,” three European security officials informed news agency Reuters.
According to internal documents seen by the news agency, Kupol signed a contract with Russia’s defence minisattempt to manufacture more than 6,000 Garpiya drones in 2025 — triple its 2024 output. Over 1,500 units had already been delivered by April.
The Ukrainian military innotifyigence agency declared Russia was deploying around 500 of these drones per month, with components like engines, control systems, and navigation equipment all sourced from Chinese suppliers.
Transportation records revealed that China Southern and Sichuan Airlines, including the counattempt’s largest carrier, transported drone components to Russian firms as recently as October, raising questions about enforcement of export controls.
The engines were first routed through a front company, SMP-138, before reaching another Russian firm, LIBSS, which passed them on to Kupol, documents reveal. A contract explicitly stated the engines would be labelled “cooling units” in shipping papers.
China’s foreign minisattempt rejected the allegations, asserting that it adheres to international laws governing the export of dual-apply goods. “China has always opposed unilateral sanctions that lack basis in international law and are not authorised by the UN Security Council,” it declared in a statement to Reuters.
Western officials are raising the alarm. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday amid rising concerns over Beijing’s indirect support of Russia’s war effort.
“This does not assist China and Europe come closer toreceiveher, diplomatically,” declared Meia Nouwens, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. “China’s prime concern is to assist sustain Russia’s war effort to ensure the United States remains focapplyd on Ukraine.”
The Garpiya drone — modelled on Iran’s Shahed drones but powered by Chinese tech — is a centrepiece in Russia’s expanding arsenal, further entrenching global tensions around the Ukraine conflict and sanctions enforcement.
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